Big business cries poor despite record profits, ask working families to pay
29 Aug 2008
Australian working families are being asked to pay even more money for the emissions of some of the country's most polluting companies, despite these businesses continuing to make record profits, WWF warned today.
Self-serving companies and industry groups are this week calling for even greater compensation from a proposed emissions trading scheme, which will leave the average Australian family to foot the bill.
The leading conservation organisation today urged the Federal Government to reject the bleating of peak industry groups and focus on delivering a fair and equitable system that will benefit all Australians and the environment for future generations.
"These companies have known for 20 years that carbon pollution would have to be cut,” said WWF-Australia CEO Greg Bourne. "Why should the public pay for their negligence or deception?
"Some of these companies are complaining of having to take their business overseas yet are continuing to record huge profits and will continue to enjoy favourable conditions in this country even after the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme has started.”
Even after Australia introduces an emissions trading scheme it will still have some of the cheapest and most reliable energy in the world, some of largest mineral reserves in the world, some of the best railways, ports, roads and institutions, some of the largest per capita financial reserves and the lowest sovereign risk in the world.
The Business Council of Australia (BCA) - which is made up of the country's top 100 companies - last weekend released what Mr Bourne has labeled "the BCA loser's report", which aims to torpedo the Federal Government's ETS and ensure even more compensation for Australia's most profitable and polluting companies.
"Where is the "winner's report'' which highlights those companies that have thought ahead and will benefit from the changes?" Mr Bourne said.
The BCA report Modelling Success: Designing an ETS that Works uses 14 unidentified companies to claim an ETS will lead to the collapse of high polluting businesses. However, the report gives no indication of the size or even the nature of these polluting companies and there are no concrete figures supplied to confirm the claims it makes.
"This report lacks all transparency and shows that the BCA, which is supposed to provide leadership and find opportunities for innovation and new business, has been hijacked by wealthy self-interested parties who continue to expect working families to foot their compensation bills."
Remarkably, the modelling of the BCA report also assumes businesses involved in the ETS will not change or adapt in any way over the next 30 years. More startling still is that some members of the BCA seemed completely unaware of the report's contents, Mr Bourne said.
Chief executives of high polluting businesses will meet with Resources Minister Martin Ferguson this Friday to argue for even greater compensation under a carbon pollution reduction scheme.
For more information
Alvin Stone, WWF-Australia Press Office
Phone: (02) 8202 1259 or mobile 0418 617 366
