They say truth is the first casualty of war. So, the first thing the federal opposition does when Matt Kean releases the emissions costings for the seven nuclear power plants it wants to build in Australia is to say “you’re fired!”
Kean, who’ll be alongside Martijn Wilder of Pollination at the first of our monthly Leaders Forum on Tuesday next week, is the chair of the Climate Change Authority. But worse for the coalition: he’s a former NSW treasurer and energy minister.
In his current job it’s Kean’s duty to report on climate impacts of major projects, to explain to the Australian people what those projected nuclear power plants will do to emissions.
His analogy? Nuclear power for Australia will be like adding another two giant carbon bombs to Australia’s atmosphere (and that of the rest of the world) each the size of the Beetaloo Basin gas mine – a massive 2 billion tonnes.
And by the way, it’s “We the People” who will pay for it under the coalition plans. Not the owners of the expensive nuclear equipment that would power those plants, nor the posse of consultants expecting to get rich on the proceeds.
One way to deal with inconvenient truth is to deny it … point blank. It’s remarkably effective.
Trump learnt that trick from the “notorious” lawyer Roy Cohn who taught him very early in his career how to evade prosecution.
As an ABC documentary showed on Monday night, Cohn instructed Trump to stare down his accusers, to go on the attack and deny everything, no matter how convincing the evidence.
Almost magically, people on the side of law and justice are so shocked by this blatant disregard for the truth, they back down. Trump – and Cohn – win.
It’s a neat trick. And we’re seeing this play out with the nuclear debate with the attacks on Kean.
Shadow finance minister Jane Hume said Kean would likely lose his job if her party won government in the upcoming federal election.
She told the ABC that while she would not be responsible for firing Kean from his current post, she could not see him remaining in place under a Dutton government.
“That is not a decision for me, but I could not imagine maintaining a commission that is so badly politicised that is not serving its purpose to provide independent advice to government on its climate change policy.”
Kean said, “The Climate Change Authority is a scientific-backed organisation. We put the science and the facts on the table for the Australian public to make up their minds. What is political, in fact, is people who deny science and deny basic economics in their policies.”
Come along on Tuesday and see Kean in action at the first of our monthly Leaders Forums. One of our questions will be how the states, territory and industry policies will hold up under a change of government.
We’re sure you will have plenty of your own.
It would be helpful, for his credibility among other things, if Matt Kean could explain _why_ “Nuclear power for Australia will be like adding another two giant carbon bombs to Australia’s atmosphere”
Is it the from the construction or the operation of the nuclear power plants?
no apologies it should have been in the story – it’s from the delay in the clean energy transition. The delaying tactics while we wait 100 years for the reactors to be approved and built