Post by cjm on Jul 17, 2014 5:15:58 GMT
www.nytimes.com/2014/07/17/world/asia/australia-scraps-tax-on-carbon.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0
SYDNEY, Australia — The Australian government on Thursday repealed laws requiring large companies to pay for carbon emissions, fulfilling a key election promise of Prime Minister Tony Abbott.
The Senate voted 39 to 32 on Thursday to repeal the so-called carbon tax, after Mr. Abbott’s conservative government secured the support of a number of independent senators. The House of Representatives voted earlier in the week to repeal the measure, which has been a highly contentious issue in Australian politics.
The measure was devised to penalize hundreds of Australia’s biggest producers of carbon emissions, setting a price of 23 Australian dollars, or $21.50, per metric ton of carbon dioxide when it was put into effect in 2012 under Prime Minister Julia Gillard. The price rose to 25 Australian dollars this month.
The Senate voted 39 to 32 on Thursday to repeal the so-called carbon tax, after Mr. Abbott’s conservative government secured the support of a number of independent senators. The House of Representatives voted earlier in the week to repeal the measure, which has been a highly contentious issue in Australian politics.
The measure was devised to penalize hundreds of Australia’s biggest producers of carbon emissions, setting a price of 23 Australian dollars, or $21.50, per metric ton of carbon dioxide when it was put into effect in 2012 under Prime Minister Julia Gillard. The price rose to 25 Australian dollars this month.