The Green dream, no industry we can just cater for tourists coming to our Australsian paradise. Of course before that happens we face economic collapse.
We have to put in a large export tax on gas which is offset by the amount supplied to local industry. Every bit sold here amounts to double that amount export tax free. Build another three or four coal fired power stations with retiree money, guaranteed by the Government and a proper rate of return say 4%.
Why don't the greens join rural fire services? That would save much more of our forests than all their current demonstrating.

Can't argue with the well chosen, please all, value lacking, wording of this article.

Hard to disagree with any of this. But see no appetite for change in current political ranks on either side of the isle.

Anti nuclear advocate Mark Butler sums most of this up with his broken record rethoric, that nuclear energy is not part of labor policy. Why not? Repeat previous answer until the questioning stops!

Then comes out saying confidential conversations with unnamed sources, had a bearing on his statements?

Me too, given I talk to God every day. And it's disconcerting to hear voices coming out of thin air! But even more disconcerting, when you understand, like Mark, what they're saying?

Eh? What was that? Sorry, was interrupted by an unnamed confidential source.

If we are to ever sort out the mess, then we simply can't trust those who between them, created it. Given they all seem to be in this or that pocket or the captive of vested special interest?

There's an answer and it's called nuclear! Namely walk away safe, molten salt thorium reactors. And the only real problem is the energy we could provide with the best of all worlds, is too cheap, too clean, too safe and just too easy!

And that has current government and oppositions alike completely bollixed,or boxed into a corner and confronted on all sides by competing interests, with skin in the power supply game.

And given almost to a man, they are debt laden foreigners, whose patriotism/national interest, is with anyone else but us? Therefore their input must be ignored?

Instead, we need to trot out government sponsored and facilitated, cooperative private enterprise power provision. As the most efficient, lowest costing method/means of fixing this conundrum!

And until the answer for base load power is ultra reliable continuous nuclear, we will remain a dog chasing its tail until the Elvis comes back into the building!
Alan B.

I think the primary driver of energy policy should be emissions targets in the expectation that cost and reliability will follow from market pressures. Instead we have double dipping and deficit destroying under Direct Action. With the RET we have subsidies double the average power price plus forced diseconomics of the most reliable part of the system. It's barking mad.

We're all waiting on Finkel's emissions intensity scheme. I suspect it will have serious bugs and it may never see the light of day. Carbon tax is political suicide in Australia and Canada's federal version conveniently doesn't start until 2018. Emissions trading schemes as in the EU and California get progressively watered down to near irrelevance. Obama's 1000 lb of CO2 per Mwh rule is to be set aside. Are there any successful schemes out there?

The Paris pledge was to reduce emissions at least a quarter below 2005 levels by 2030. Since we're still at about 2005 level we'll need to lose about 10 million tonnes a year from now to 2030. Perhaps that's nearly impossible both physically and politically.

Yes Tas, but only because (thundering popinjays) dumb as dishwater political hacks, who would likely more in their natural homes in regional coucil chambers? Refuse to even look even halfway seriously at the nuclear option and being paid to reprocess waste, theirs, given the best senorio includes not making any of ours!

Now that's my kind of virtually costless nuclear option and the glaringly obvious reason we don't yet have it?

It'd kill all the other options stone dead! So hiss it into the wind, or change your voting intentions forever! No ifs, buts or maybes!

Better we sell, without general concensus, family heirlooms, the farm and our economic sovereignty.

Look where we are and where we and tiny resource poor Singapore were just after war in the Pacific ended. And then understand what we created when reason and logic was/is replaced by dogma and ideology?

And what tiny resource poor Singapore didn't in comparison, by refusing to listen to the self defeating suicidal blandishments of those (purveyors of the Emperor's new clothes) who just want to rip all they can from whoever?

And any who object to the fire sale of stuff we bought and paid for replacing competent economic management! Can just go visit the nearest taxidermist!
Alan B.

Jack boot John sold us down the river for a republic all because of his own hearatige Not a mention for born Australians.
That is where all the slime began flowing.