At last, an Australian government has presented for public consideration an intelligently conceived framework for a national carbon emissions plan. Much work must be done over the next four to five months to flesh out the key elements, so it can be put to Parliament for approval as law.
Has Julia Gillard broken her pre-election 'no carbon tax' promise? Does it matter? Her promise was legitimately overtaken by events — the election outcome leaving Labor in precarious minority government, with the ascendant Greens and two interested Independent members (Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott) enjoying a powerful voice in climate change policy.
One may doubt whether this plan would have been put forward so soon in Gillard's first elected term, had her hand not been forced.
The election outcome reflected disenchantment with Labor's repeated climate change policy failures since 2007, and the resulting haemorrhage of Labor's youth and inner urban vote to the Greens. Even so, carbon emissions policy might have stayed in the too-hard basket for another term, if Gillard had had any parliamentary choice. She does not.
The incoming Minister, Greg Combet, made clear soon after the election that the Multi-Party Climate Change Committee (MPCCC) would study all policy options for setting a price on carbon.
The committee, whose proceedings are confidential, has now announced a hybrid package with a temporary fixed carbon price (or tax) starting in mid-2012, but with firm plans to move to an emissions trading scheme three to five years thereafter.
The plan to which Gillard has committed herself is an intelligent bid for Labor's political survival at the next election, as well as being entirely in the national interest.
The Greens and Labor may dispute parenthood of this jointly supported plan: actually it was first put forward in Ross Garnaut's 2008 Climate Change Review.
Tony Abbott is the bad fairy at this christening, determined to blight this baby's future. His confected outrage is opportunistic. He is trying to whip up the same alliance of climate change denialism and conservative business opposition that brought down Nelson, Turnbull and Rudd.
It is a tragic mistake for the Coalition that under Abbott's leadership they have abandoned any serious participation in national policy-making on climate change. Abbott will be remembered as a wilfully shortsighted obstructionist, who puts his own perceived tactical political advantage ahead of the national interest.
Fortunately, Abbott speaks here to a dwindling and increasingly discredited constituency.
There is no doubt that the mainstream electorate now better