“New Zealanders don’t want to be subject to a ‘world first’ climate change experiment that will mean the government micromanages their lives”, says ACT Leader David Seymour.
“This is an issue of values. Labour says we want to control your lives. We’ll tell you what kind of fuels to use, tell you what kind of car to drive, tell you how long your showers should be.
“Effectively banning people from using fossil fuels is virtue signalling on a global scale using other people’s money.
“ACT says you can use cheap and effective fossil fuels if you want and you’ll pay for them through the Emissions Trading Scheme.
“100 per cent renewables is a dumb idea anyway. The Interim Climate Change Commission said the plan to transition to 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2035 would push power prices up for little environmental gain.
“The former chairperson of the ICCC, David Prentice said:
‘(Prices would rise) 14 percent for residential electricity, 29 percent for commercial, and 39 percent for industrial electricity.’
“The real reason it’s so hard to invest and develop new energy sources in New Zealand is because of red tape and regulation.
“The Overseas Investment Act – the most onerous foreign investment law in the developed world – stops people from investing in the first place.
“If overseas investors do get in the door, the 900-page RMA stops them from developing anything.
“Then there are archaic restrictions on genetic modification that prevents scientific innovation.
“ACT has the best, simplest, and most durable climate policy. It would tie New Zealand’s emission cap to our trading partners’ emissions, allow people to make their own choices in view of the carbon price that creates, and ensure political durability by giving all New Zealanders a stake in the ETS as recipients of a carbon tax credit.
“ACT would ditch the Zero Carbon Act and the Climate Change Commission.
“There’s no point being a world leader if the country is bankrupted in the process. ACT stands for real change in our climate policy, ensuring it is practical, effective, and not going to make life harder for New Zealanders.”