26 April 2021
Federal and state governments are spending more than $10 billion a year propping up the fossil fuel industry, through a system of tax breaks and cash handouts that encourage the entrenched use of oil, gas and coal by Australian business, new research by the Australia Institute finds.
The biggest portion of that figure is the whopping $7.84 billion the federal government returns to business through its fuel tax credit scheme. That’s more than the $7.82 billion it put aside for the Army in the 2020-21 budget.
The progressive Canberra-based think tank, which is a vocal campaigner for aggressive climate action, found just over $1.5 billion of that $7.84 billion went on fuel used by the fossil fuel mining industry. In other words, it subsidised the fossil fuels used to help dig up more fossil fuels.
Australia spending billions on fossil fuel subsidies: report - World News
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burning company fat
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Australian fossil fuel subsidies hit $10 3 billion in 2020-21
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Last modified on Fri 22 Jan 2021 14.02 EST
The Morrison government has quietly appointed fossil fuel industry leaders and a controversial economist to a committee responsible for ensuring the integrity of projects that get climate funding.
Critics have raised concerns about whether some appointees to the Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee may have a potential conflict of interest that could leave its decisions open to legal challenge.
The overhaul of the committee follows the government indicating it plans to expand the industries that can access its $2.5bn emissions reduction fund, including opening it to carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects by oil and gas companies.