Cabinet papers reveal Howard warned of disaster risk before rejecting Kyoto Protocol

Speaking at the release of the previously confidential material, made available on January 1 by the National Archives of Australia, Ruddock said the government had received extensive scientific research showing the serious environmental and societal consequences of unchecked greenhouse gas emissions.

The 10-page submission to cabinet, dated August 8, 2005, reveals that ministers were aware of mounting international scientific concern about global warming and the likely consequences of inaction, even as internal debate continued over whether Australia should commit to binding emissions targets.

The paper predicted climate change would place significant pressure on water resources in the cities and rural areas, with reduced rainfall and more severe droughts in south-west and south-eastern Australia.

“The Howard government, while not ratifying Kyoto, was very cognisant of the research that had been done in relation to climate change,” Ruddock said.

Ruddock noted that cabinet papers made explicit reference to environmental risks that resonate strongly today, including bushfires – a threat that recent weeks’ fires across New South Wales have tragically underlined – and hinted there were lessons for the modern-day Liberal Party.

The submission, authored by then-foreign minister Alexander Downer and environment minister Ian Campbell, urged Cabinet to note that the climate was changing and “some observed changes are occurring more quickly than previously predicted”.

https://www.watoday.com.au/politics/federal/cabinet-papers-reveal-howard-warned-of-disaster-risk-before-rejecting-kyoto-protocol-20251230-p5nqsa.html

Raider
What a leader, he was not.