'Disgrace': Angus Taylor under pressure after failing to release emissions data

Extract from The Guardian

Energy

Greens warn the new emissions reduction minister could be in contempt of parliament

Lisa Cox

Mon 3 Jun 2019 13.58 AEST Last modified on Mon 3 Jun 2019 16.22 AEST

Emissions reduction minister Angus Taylor has failed to meet the deadline to publish Australia’s emissions data. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

Labor and the Greens have demanded the government immediately release national greenhouse emissions data, and have warned the new emissions reduction minister could be in contempt of parliament for missing the deadline to publish the figures.
Angus Taylor’s first act in his new role was to miss a Senate-set deadline on Friday for the publication of Australia’s emissions data for the December 2018 quarter.
The Senate passed an order last year that requires the minister to publish the quarterly greenhouse gas inventory no later than five months after the end of each quarter.
For the December quarter that date was 31 May.

The government, via a statement from the environment department, said late on Friday: “We anticipate the quarterly update of Australia’s national greenhouse gas inventory: December 2018 will be released soon.”
But Labor’s climate and energy spokesman, Mark Butler, said Taylor “must immediately release the latest emissions data”.
“Angus Taylor has failed his first task as new emissions reduction minister,” Butler said. “This is a disgrace and shows total disregard to the Australian people and Senate process.
“But really it’s no surprise considering Angus Taylor has continually argued against climate action and is part of a government that has continually lied about what their emissions data actually shows, which is that emissions are rising and we’re not on track to meet our international climate commitments.”
The government has been under pressure because its climate policy has been failing to stall Australia’s emissions, which have been increasing every year for the past four years.
The Senate passed the order for rolling quarterly deadlines last year to address delays in the publication of national carbon pollution figures.
The Greens climate spokesman, Adam Bandt, said the minister could be in contempt of parliament.

“The government and minister are showing early signs of contempt for the parliament and should be punished.
“Emissions data should be no different to other nationally significant data, which gets released by the ABS like clockwork. The release of greenhouse pollution data should be automatic and free from ministerial interference.”
In Senate estimates last year, department officials were asked if complying with Senate orders to publish the reports within five months would be a problem.
“No … That time is sufficient for us to make use of the available data to prepare the reports,” they said.

On Monday afternoon the Greens Leader Richard Di Natale wrote to the government’s deputy senate leader, Simon Birmingham, who is the representative for both Taylor and the environment department in the Senate.
Di Natale reminded Birmingham of the department’s testimony that it could meet the upper house deadline.
“Given the testimony from the department, the only conclusion is that it was held back for political reasons by the minister’s office,” he wrote.
“I seek your answers explaining the reasons for the delay and reserve my right to put a motion to the Senate should the government continue to demonstrate signs of contempt for the Senate and its role in scrutinising the use of executive power.”
Tim Baxter of the Climate and Energy College at Melbourne University, said although Morrison’s new ministry was only sworn in last week, he did not believe that should have led to a delay.
“I don’t really think that’s a decent excuse under the circumstances because it’s not like the report has to be written. It has to be read,” he said.
“Taylor, while he hasn’t been emissions reduction minister for long, has been energy minister and he has seen these reports.”
Baxter said much of the information that was in the report was the same as previous quarters, it was just the headline figures that changed.

“This is a pretty unambiguous Senate order. It’s not something he gets to choose …he’s the minister and it’s his job,” he said.