Anthony Albanese’s minister shares defiant message over fears US will pull out of major Paris climate agreement and derail Australia’s clean energy move

Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen has insisted the Australian government will remain committed to fighting climate change regardless of Donald Trump’s policies.

The president-elect has been very vocal about it what he’s thinking about climate changeand called it a “hoax” and “one of the biggest scams of all time.”

He dismantled nearly 100 climate policies during his first term as president in 2016, and environmentalists fear he will go even further in his second administration.

He is likely to try to pull the US out of the Paris climate accord for a second time, which aims to keep average global temperatures below 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels.

Trump has also informed his supporters of his plans to “drill, baby, drill” by massively increasing U.S. production of oil and gas.

Bowen admitted on Wednesday that the Labor government “doesn’t know yet” what Trump will do, but insisted it will not change Australia’s course.

“The election of a new president will not change some fundamental issues, regardless of which approach he chooses,” Bowen said ABC’s 7:30 on Wednesday evening.

“The fundamentals that the world will continue to warm and we need to take action – point one.

“Point two: the economics of renewable energy are so strong and it is our national interest to embrace that and expand renewable energy.

‘And point three: the United States is responsible for just over 10 percent of the world’s emissions. Does this mean that the rest of the 90 percent of us won’t worry about it anymore, even if the US withdraws its action?

‘No, it doesn’t. That is not our approach, it will not be our approach and it is not the approach of most international partners I talk to.”

Bowen’s optimistic attitude stems from the COP29 climate summit being held in Azerbaijan this weekend.

‘When I talk to international colleagues, no one says: ‘let’s give up’. There are people in every domestic debate who say that, there are people in Australia who say that,” Bowen told the programme.

“Even if a major power withdraws, that can be a moment for middle powers to step up and continue to advocate for action. That’s what I’m going to do, that’s what Australia is going to do.’

He added that other “middle powers” such as Germany, Canada and Britain will do the same.

However, Mr Bowen refused to set a date for when the Albanian government will announce Australia’s 2035 emissions reduction target under the Paris climate agreement.

The deadline is February, but Mr Bowen has repeatedly refused to be pinned down on whether he will unveil a target before the next federal election.

Donald Trump dismantled nearly 100 climate policies during his first term as president in 2016, and environmentalists fear he will go even further in his second administration.

Some have pointed out that this is because the main issue likely to dominate the election is the cost of living crisis, and the government does not want to risk focusing more on climate goals that have no discernible impact in the short term the voters. -term lives.

This is made worse by the fact that opposition leader Peter Dutton has stated that he will not announce the 2035 target before the election, and by his lobbying for nuclear power – a policy favored by Trump.

Professor Michelle Grattan, esteemed journalist and chief political correspondent The conversationargued that Mr Bowen was facing threats from all sides over the 2035 target.

“A bold target would make the government more vulnerable just when Labor would like to draw attention to the Coalition’s problematic nuclear policy,” Prof Grattan wrote.

“On the other hand, if the target was modest, it would be exploited by the Greens.”