Policy dance on net zero commitments suits both Nationals and Liberals

"This is no pantomime," Nationals Leader Barnaby Joyce declared this week when presented with a proposal for new climate policy by Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Energy, Industry and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor. The current policy, as repeatedly stated by Morrison, is for Australia to reach net zero emissions "as quickly as possible" and "preferably" by 2050. Photo shows A composite image of Barnaby Joyce and Scott Morrison Not for the first time, the 21 members of the Nationals party-room find themselves as the centre of Australia's climate change debate, with some adamant to refuse a net zero target regardless of what policy is behind it. That a "net zero by 2050" policy barely meets the minimum expected of Australia — by close allies and Pacific neighbours alike — could again be blamed on internal politics, rather than Morrison's own history of reticence on taking action on climate change.