John Boscawen- ETS newsletter

16 June 2010

To those who have recently subscribed to my ETS Campaign newsletter - Welcome!

I have just completed another series of Public Meetings around New Zealand, and this brings the number of meetings I have held to 37. That is 37 groups of New Zealanders from Whangarei to Invercargill, from all walks of life, united in their opposition to this punishing new tax. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. Every day myself and my staff receive numerous phone calls and emails of support for ACT's campaign.  Public Meetings are very successful in raising awareness of the ETS and concerns have been heightened by the recent announcements of price increases by Mercury Energy and Contact Energy.

In less than one month, the Government is going to usher in the most comprehensive emissions trading scheme in the world. We’re going to expose our famers and exporters to costs that none of our major trading partners incur. We’re going to lead the world on climate change, we will lead the world with our Emissions Trading Scheme, despite the fact that the National Party promised that we wouldn’t be world leaders, but fast followers.

From 1 July all New Zealanders will pay more for their electricity, their heating, their petrol, and their food, in fact for virtually everything they consume, as a consequence of the ETS.

There will be massive windfall profits to the electricity generators.

Close to 70 percent of our electricity is generated from renewable sources, yet under the ETS, New Zealanders will be charged more for electricity, and for over 80 percent of the time they will pay a price based on coal and gas generation.

We’re doing this to ourselves at a time when our gross emissions of carbon dioxide per capita are actually less than what they were in 1990; and that totally ignores the impact of carbon sequestration by our forests, which results in an even greater net reduction in emissions per capita.

Our ETS will be the most comprehensive in the world. The Minister for Climate Change Issues, Dr Nick Smith, has said so himself. On 24 September last year he said: “The Emissions Trading Scheme will be the first of any country outside Europe, and on 1 July 2010 it will be the most comprehensive, by including transport, industrial, and energy emissions.”

Where Is The Money Going?

This year alone, we’re allocating $1.2 billion in forestry credits. Of that $1.2 billion, $400 million is to go to pre-1990 foresters as compensation for losses, that in the absence of a post-2012 Kyoto replacement we can’t even be sure will be incurred.

Many people think the money is going to the planting of new trees in the future. It is not. The great bulk of credits allocated will be going in respect of trees planted in the 1990s when foresters themselves acknowledge they had no expectations of receiving subsidies from their fellow tax payers. I held a Public Meeting recently in Gore. There they heat their homes with coal. From 1 July the price of coal will rise by 30 percent. And the money will go to the Japanese owners of forests in Southland.

National’s Spin

In response to ACT’s campaign, Nick Smith and the National MP’s are continuing to try to mislead the public about the ETS. Here are some examples;

The Spin: Of the 38 developed countries that have Kyoto obligations, 29 have emissions trading schemes.

The Truth: Those 29 countries are all in Europe, covered by a single European scheme. 80 percent of European exports are to other countries within Europe, so they are equally disadvantaged. Only 20 percent of European exports leave Europe to compete with countries that don’t have emissions trading schemes. In contrast, only 15 percent of NZ's exports go to Europe, leaving a massive 85 percent going to countries that don’t have the added costs of an emissions trading scheme. Therefore, our competitive disadvantage is five times greater than anything faced in Europe.

The Spin: The ETS will ‘only’ cost the average household $165 a year or $3.17 a week.

The Truth: National's calculation is based on average household power consumption and kilometres driven and is a substantial underestimate, because it fails to fully take into account the flow through of petrol and energy costs into the costs of everything else households consume, including food.

The Spin: Even though Australia will not have an ETS until at least 2013, it’s regulating for a minimum of amount of renewable generation. Therefore the price of electricity is forecast to rise by seven percent and ours will initially rise by ‘only’ five percent.

The Truth: Electricity prices in Australia are only one half to two thirds of what we pay. So even if there is a seven percent increase in Australia, the gap between yourselves and Australia will still widen.

Farmers haven’t been fooled that they’ll only be incurring ETS costs from 2015. Meat and Wool NZ estimate that the average dairy farmer will pay $3900 p.a. from 1 July 2010, rising to $7800 pa in 2013, and finally $10,200 in 2015. For the average beef and sheep farmer the costs are $1475 pa (now), $2950 pa (2013) and $5250 pa (2015) respectively.

Finally, the biggest travesty of all, is that this very expensive scheme, won’t actually make an iota of difference to the world’s climate. The Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor, Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, pointed out that we’re far too small to make any difference. He said: “anything we do as a nation will in itself have little impact on the climate – our impact will be symbolic, moral and political.” Yet he supports our ETS!

Regardless of whether you belief in the hypothesis of man made global warming or not, it simply makes no sense what so ever for New Zealand to lead on this issue.

What Can You Do?

I urge you to send emails to the most senior members of the cabinet. The email addresses are (excluding Nick Smith);
john.key@parliament.govt.nz; bill.english@parliament.govt.nz;gerry.brownlee@parliament.govt.nz;simon.power@parliament.govt.nz; tony.ryall@parliament.govt.nz;judith.collins@parliament.govt.nz;anne.tolley@parliament.govt.nz;christopher.finlayson@parliament.govt.nz;

david.carter@parliament.govt.nz;murray.mccully@parliament.govt.nz;tim.groser@parliament.govt.nz

To write to your local MP the email address format is the same, i.e. firstname.lastname@parliament.govt.nz

Join the Protest at Parliament on Tuesday 22 June, 2010. Meet at the Civic Square by the Michael Fowler Hall, Wellington at 12 noon, to march on Parliament at 12.30. For more information contact Esther Henderson at doonhill@farmside.co.nz

Tell your friends about my next Public Meetings
TE PUKE- Monday 28 June, 2.30 p.m.- Kiwi 360, 35 Young Road, Te Puke
TAURANGA - Monday 28 June, 7.30 p.m. - RSA Greerton, 1237 Cameron Rd., Greerton, Tauranga

Please forward this email on to your friends and family.

Best regards,

John Boscawen MP | ACT New Zealand
T: (09) 531 5531
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