CANBERRA, Oct 25 (Reuters) – Australia’s cabinet is expected to formally adopt a target for net zero emissions by 2050 when it meets on Monday to review a deal reached between parties in Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s coalition government, official sources told Reuters.
The ruling coalition has been divided over how to tackle climate change, with the government maintaining that harder targets would damage the A$2-trillion ($1.5-trillion) economy.
On Sunday, a junior partner in the government said it would back a target of net zero emissions by 2050, a policy Morrison will take to the U.N. COP26 climate summit in Glasgow next weekend. L8N2RK04T
“The Australian people will know our plan,” Morrison told lawmakers ahead of Monday’s meeting. He remarked that he would appoint a National Party lawmaker to cabinet, giving a fleeting glimpse of the deal terms.
The cabinet is set to meet late on Monday, two sources familiar with its schedule have told Reuters, adding that the government would then formally adopt the climate target, barring any unexpected delay.
The sources sought anonymity because they are not authorised to talk to the media.
The deal is not universally popular within the coalition, with media having reported Joyce as telling his party that he opposed the net zero target.
Morrison is under intense pressure at home and aboard, with a poll on Monday showing support for his government at its lowest in three years.
He faces an election by May 2022, and a poll published this month showed a record number of Australians were worried by climate change.
