‘NO DIRECT LINK TO CLIMATE CHANGE’

MELBOURNE: Australia’s government is sticking firmly to a position that there is no direct link between climate change and the country’s devastating bushfires, despite public anger, the anguish of victims and warnings from scientists. Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor say Australia does not need to cut carbon emissions more aggressively to limit global warming, even after a three-year drought and unprecedented bushfires. Instead they say Australia, which contributes 1.3% of the world’s carbon emissions, should be rewarded for beating its emissions reduction targets for 2020. – Reuters