Spot the odd one out.
The USA is now the only remaining opponent to taking action on climate change.
It’s official; The Sydney Morning Herald is reporting Rudd becomes PM, ratifies Kyoto.
Mr Rudd’s first act after taking his oath of office was to sign the instrument of ratification for Kyoto, the international agreement which commits countries to targets for reducing or capping their greenhouse gas emissions.
True to his word, Kevin Rudd made ratification of Kyoto his first action as the new Prime Minister of Australia, before even appointing the bulk of his cabinet.
She [Deputy PM Julia Gillard], Mr Rudd and [governor-general] Maj-Gen Jeffery immediately held their first meeting of the executive council to sign the Kyoto instrument and appoint the remaining 18 cabinet ministers, 10 outer ministers and 12 parliamentary secretaries.
This leaves the United States of America isolated as the only significant opponent to the global climate change treaty. Meanwhile many US states have taken the step of informally approving the Kyoto protocol within their own jurisdictions although of course this lacks the full weight of having the country ratify as a whole. The first consequence of Australia’s ratification is that it can participate in the forthcoming Bali negotiations that start next later this week. The US’s role is limited to observer status only.
I would like to personally congratulate Kevin Rudd and his team for sticking to their word, and indeed for going the extra step and appointing Penny Wong as a dedicated Minister for Climate Change. This appointment, separate to the broader role of Environment Minister assumed by former protest singer Peter Garrett, lends an appropriate gravitas to what is now widely acknowledged to be the most serious threat facing human existence the world has ever faced. — DS
Technorati Tags: Australia, Bali, carbon credits, carbon neutral, carbon offsetting, climate change, emissions reduction, emissions trading, global warming, Kevin Rudd, Kyoto Protocol, Penny Wong, Peter Garrett, politics, USA
