The Climate Election has not delivered a government serious about acting on the climate crisis.

“Communities around Australia are already ahead of politicians on climate change, and will drive change. If the Morrison Government won’t lead, the people of Australia will lead in their place,” said 350 Australia CEO Glen Klatovsky.

“The people of Australia have shouted loudly to all federal politicians ‘take climate change seriously and act with ambition’. The Coalition victory comes in spite of the concerns of Australians, and communities are calling on them to radically shift from their current policy failures.”

“Ultimately, the Labor party lost because they did not present voters with a clear and compelling vision for how they would translate the community call for climate action into a substantive policy. This allowed a scare campaign to work,” Klatovsky continued.

The desire of the Australian community to see climate action is clear.

“The calls for climate action from the huge numbers of people across the country – who got out in their communities in the lead-up and during the election campaign – shows that the people of Australia are demanding a serious shift to policies that will address the climate crisis.”

Australians are already feeling the impacts of climate change. The start of 2019 was the hottest on record, and saw debilitating heatwaves across the entire country, record drought, unprecedented flooding in Townsville and bushfires raging across 200,000 hectares in Tasmania.

“The mining, burning and export of coal is Australia’s number one contribution to global warming,” continued Mr Klatovsky. “Australia is also world’s number one exporter of LNG, including from unconventional coal seam gas mining and fracking. Australia has one of the highest per capita emissions of carbon dioxide in the world.

“As a country, we are contributing to dangerous climate change and putting our regional neighbours at risk.”

“The world’s scientists have told us we must keep global warming to 1.5 degrees to protect our civilisation. Australians will continue to hold this Coalition government – and any party seeking to form government – to account until they develop climate action policy and adaptation measures that will protect the people of Australia and the world,” concluded Mr Klatovsky.

For interviews:

Glen Klatovsky, CEO, 350 Australia on 0410 482243

Authorised by Glen Klatovsky, CEO, 350 Australia, Sydney. Correspondence in regard to any authorised material can be sent to: glen@350.org.au.