The Australian Government is holding back Timor-Leste from developing its own energy security, said Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown.

With Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos Horta in Parliament today, Senator Brown called on the Australian Government to commit to assisting Timor-Leste to develop a clean energy future.

“The Australian Government is not supporting a gas pipeline to connect the Greater Sunrise field to Timor-Leste, which would assist the young nation to develop its own fuel source and related industries,” said Senator Brown.

Greens call on government to act now

Launching a report commissioned by the Electrical Trades Union of Victoria in Melbourne, the Australian Greens today called on the Rudd government to introduce a gross national feed-in tariff for renewable energy as community support for this measure grows.

Australian Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown said that the report shows that over 22,500 jobs would be created by introducing a national gross feed-in tariff for solar energy.

Sunday, 23 September 2007
 
 
Greens claim Howard's renewable energy announcement is a massive fudge
 
              Brown responds to Howard
 
 
 
Today's announcement by environment minister Malcolm Turnbull on renewable energy is the announcement you have when you have nothing new to say.
 
His fact sheet shows that the new Howard Government target is simply a sum of existing renewable energy targets by state and federal governments, Greens Leader Bob Brown said today
 

"We have better policies" – Brown

Labor Leader Kevin Rudd's $1.5billion proposal, including $500 million of public money, for 'clean coal' should be going to energy efficiency (saving wasted power), renewable energy, solar-thermal and geothermal (hot rocks), Greens Leader Bob Brown said today.

The Greens' Sunpower Plan would make Australia a manufacturing hub for solar power as the world moves to combat global warming, Greens Senator Bob Brown said in Adelaide today.

"The Greens' plan would secure the future of Origin Energy's solar cell pilot plant in Adelaide, encourage BP Solar to remain in Australia, and avoid Australian technology being commercialised overseas, like the UNSW solar cell plant in Germany," Senator Brown said.

Australia should adopt a mandatory target to enhance energy efficiency (save power) by 30% by 2020, Greens Senator Bob Brown said today, as the World Energy Congress opens in Sydney with an address by the Prime Minister.

"Energy efficiency is the cheapest, quickest way of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, enhancing Australia's economic performance and reducing our dependence on imported oil," Senator Brown said.

Abetz is wrong

Claims by Senator Eric Abetz on Tasmanian ABC radio this morning that lifting the target for renewable energy through the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target (MRET) scheme would cost 2400 jobs in Tasmania, are wrong, said Greens Senator Bob Brown.

"Senator Abetz is echoing Mark Latham's nonsense when he warned Cunningham voters 18 months ago that if Michael Organ was elected for the Greens 10 000 jobs would go because of these policies," Senator Brown said. "In fact, renewable energy is a great job creator in regional Australia.

Greens Senator Bob Brown will move amendments in the Senate today to make commencement of the national energy market contingent on raising the Mandatory Renewable Energy Market (MRET) target to 10% by 2010 and 20% by 2020.

"This would reverse the Howard government's disastrous decision to cap MRET and black out Australia's renewable energy industry," Senator Brown said.

Howard's plan torpedoes 280 renewable energy jobs

In Tasmania The Greens will amend the government's Australian Energy Market Bill 2004, due in the Senate next week, to save the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target (MRET) scheme, Greens Senator Bob Brown said in Canberra today.

"The Howard government's decision to cap MRET from 2010 spells disaster for Australia's burgeoning renewable energy industry," Senator Brown said.

News that today's energy policy statement from Prime Minister Howard includes a $1 billion increase in the diesel fuel rebate shows a government unable to understand the urgent global need to switch to clean, green energy, Greens Senator Bob Brown said today.

Instead of a massive reorientation to solar-derived power as in Europe, Japan and Israel, the Prime Minister is putting more taxpayers' money into subsidising diesel fuel for such things as cement trucks and quarries.

"He is putting dump trucks before solar panels," Senator Brown said.