Aussie PM dumps climate targets

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has staged another dramatic retreat on energy policy in the face of a dire threat to his leadership, removing climate change targets from the National Energy Guarantee in his second policy reset in four days.

The revised scheme will go ahead without federal legislation to stipulate a 26 per cent cut to greenhouse gas emissions under changes aimed at averting a challenge from Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.

When asked yesterday morning whether his leadership was under threat, the prime minister declared: ‘‘I enjoy the confidence of the Cabinet and my party room.’’

Turnbull also said he had the support of Dutton in the wake of reports that the home affairs minister was being asked to challenge for the leadership and was inclined to run, with his supporters claiming he had majority support in the Liberal party room.

‘‘Peter Dutton was at our leadership team meeting this morning. He is a member of our team, he has given me his absolute support,’’ Turnbull said.

The changes do not abandon the government’s commitment at United Nations talks on climate change but postpone any attempt to legislate the 26 per cent target alongside the NEG, in the belief the cuts can be delivered by 2030 without the need for tougher rules.

Turnbull told a press conference yesterday morning it was clear legislation including an emissions target would not pass the Parliament. ‘‘In politics you have to focus on what you can deliver,’’ he said.

The decision postpones a divisive federal bill that has split the government over whether to legislate the Paris commitment, with former prime minister Tony Abbott and others threatening to cross the floor in a move that could trigger a leadership spill.

An exclusive Fairfax-Ipsos poll shows the Coalition has suffered a massive slump in its primary vote over the past month amid open disputes on energy and speculation over the leadership.

Turnbull raised the idea last Friday of imposing the 26 per cent cut by regulation in a federal bill to support the NEG, departing from a plan put to the Coalition party room last Tuesday to set the target by legislation.

The approach outlined yesterday is to set the target in legislation and allow it to be changed by regulation, subject to findings by regulators on what the amended target would do to household electricity prices.

While this remains Turnbull’s policy, it will not be put to the parliament unless and until it has majority support, a stance that will delay it indefinitely and avoid a trigger for disaffected Liberals to cross the floor.

‘‘We are not going to propose legislation purely for the purpose of it being defeated,’’ Turnbull said.

Treasurer Scott Morrison said the government could not rely on Labor to pass the bill to set the emission target, pointing to Labor’s refusal over weeks and months to declare how it would vote on the issue given it prefers deeper cuts of 45 per cent by 2030 compared to 2005 levels in the electricity sector.

Turnbull insisted the government’s energy policy remained the same but it would not present the bill on the emission target unless it was sure it would be carried by the parliament.

When asked if he would bring on the bill if Opposition leader Bill Shorten declared his support to guarantee the numbers in parliament, Turnbull said: ‘‘Let’s wait and see what Labor does.’’

The reset means Turnbull’s energy policy will be dominated by rules to cap default electricity prices for customers and increase financial penalties for the big three energy suppliers. – Fairfax

‘‘We are not going to propose legislation purely for the purpose of it being defeated.’’ Malcolm Turnbull