Last week surrounded by white men in suits National leader Christopher announced the party’s energy policy.
The speech was interesting.
The first part talked about anything but climate change. Luxon highlighted the environmental devastation that we faced by talking about tax and the economy. He emphasised that National’s priorities would include requiring the Reserve Bank one focus, to control inflation, stopping the addition of costs on business, remove bottlenecks that are getting in the way of business growth, providing tax relief, and bring discipline to government spending and lifting incomes for all. Welfare reform, law and order, improved health and education and resilient infrastructure were also mentioned.
It is clear to see what National’s priorities are.
He eventually got around to talking about renewable electricity.
He committed to following the Government’s emissions budgets and the country’s obligations under the Paris Accord but said that he would not necessarily use the same methods. He thinks that the country can have its lunch and eat it too and that we can still drive cars, heat our homes and grow the economy while at the same time meeting our obligations.
He claims that emissions have increased under this Labour Government which would appear to be not necessarily correct.
He showed National’s fixation with cars when he claimed that “[w]e can get a third of the way to net zero by 2050, and still drive our cars when and where we want, by going electric on a massive scale.”
Putting to one side the issue with the amount of captured carbon in new EVs who could disagree with the mass electrification of the country’s car fleet. But wouldn’t this require significant incentives to individuals to replace gas guzzlers with electric vehicles, major public investment in transmission lines, and reform of the electricity sector to incentivise small providers and homes to feed electricity into the national grid? Not to mention the huge roll out of charging stations?
Luxon then reached for the superlatives:
The challenge is ambitious. It’s exciting. And today I’m going to tell you National’s plan to achieve it.
What pray tell is this plan? Huge budgets to make sure that the New Zealand Battery project continues? Renationalisation of the Power companies so that commercial impediments are removed? Large scale funding of the sector to allow renewable energy sources to be delivered at pace?
Nope Luxon proposed RMA reform as the silver bullet. No money, no fundamental reorganisation of the sector, just RMA reform. National has never met a problem for which the solution is either RMA reform or a tax cut.
On the weekend some doubt was cast on the utility of the policy. On Q&A it was pointed out that there were a number of windfarms that have consents but which are not being built.
The problem would appear to be commercial interests not being met, not the consenting process for wind farms.
It is good for National to raise the prospect of increased use of electric vehicles and renewable energy sources. But to think that RMA reform will achieve the incredibly difficult and complex job of improving sustainability is bizarre.
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