You are here"Billionaires for Coal" support Rudd's emissions trading

"Billionaires for Coal" support Rudd's emissions trading

Twenty "Billionaires for Coal" and their supporters held a mock rally on the steps of Woodside Plaza at lunch-time today.

Passersby watched as the billionaires rallied in favour of the government's emissions trading scheme, (CPRS) to be debated in the session of federal parliament that opens today.

Speakers Paul Ooter, Avaricious Hogg and Anne T Green, representing the coal industry, emissions-intensive trade exposed industries and Rio Tinto, lined up to pour praise on the government for generous industry subsidies and the lack of a mechanism to reduce greenhouse pollution.

Holding placards declaring "We pollute and you pay! Ha! Ha!" and "Let's just buy another planet", supporters chanted in favour of the scheme.

Kevin Rudd made a guest appearance, bearing an Australian Taxpayer-funded cheque to Australia's biggest polluters for $16.4 billion – the amount of subsidies that will be awarded under the government's emissions trading scheme in its first five years.

The legislation is due to be voted on, on Thursday.

"Our light-hearted action today made the point that the government's emissions trading scheme won't reduce Australia's greenhouse emissions and will reward the biggest polluters," said spokesperson Kamala Emanuel.

"Climate change is no joke, but the government's emissions trading scheme is. We want them to come up with a fair plan to reduce Australia's carbon pollution," Emanuel said.
Tuesday 11 August 2009