Bravo, Dennis Jensen

Right but still at risk | The Australian

Former CSIRO scientist Dennis Jensen has been leading the charge against an ETS inside the Liberal Party room during the past few weeks. Jensen isn't just opposed to an ETS. He doesn't believe climate change necessarily exists.

"First, on the science," Jensen told me. "The data on global temperatures, sea ice extent, tropical upper tropospheric heating and ocean temperature suggests the danger to these do not match with predictions made by the (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change). Having said that, even if you agreed with the IPCC position, Australia going it alone, or becoming involved in an ETS without India, China and the US is pointless.

"The danger for us becoming involved in this scheme is that we will damage our relative trading and economic position compared with those nations that continue to emit. Even if our industry does not go offshore, the economic competitiveness of our industries will be reduced due to increased costs. I am not in favour of sacrificing Australian industry, and Australian jobs and economic competitiveness, on the basis of dubious science, potential increases in the emitted carbon dioxide 'problem' and certainly any improvement in the overall 'global warming' situation, even accepting the orthodoxy."

Rudd will seize on this to make the case that the Liberal Party and Nelson are, at their core, climate change sceptics. In which case Nelson's friends, such as Jensen, may do more damage to him than his enemies. And for that read Turnbull.