THE Rudd government has been accused of scaling back its ambitions on global warming after it announced new conditions yesterday that make it harder to achieve emissions cuts by anything more than 5 per cent by 2020.
Confirming reports earlier this month in The Australian Financial Review, Climate Change Minister Penny Wong said that instead of announcing a specific 2020 greenhouse target, the government would instead tell the United Nations it would stick to its existing greenhouse commitment, which ranges from a 5 per cent cut to a 25 per cent reduction on 2000 levels.
Under a widely criticised accord struck at last month's Copenhagen climate conference, countries are required by January 31 - this Sunday - to inform the UN of their commitments to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Senator Wong said the government would not adopt a stronger target than a 5 per cent cut unless the world's biggest emitters - including China and India - agreed to emissions reduction actions that can be verified by the international community.
She said there must also be clarity on the rules surrounding "emissions accounting and access to markets".
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