And this is welcome news, because Aussie prime minister Tony Abbott is one of the world’s worst climate deniers. His economic policies suck, too:
“Abbott, a combative, uncompromising right-winger, has become deeply unpopular in Australia—and his colleagues in parliament are eyeing his disastrous polling numbers with mounting horror. … Abbott is now facing a rapidly escalating revolt from within his own Liberal Party (that’s Australia’s conservative party) that could culminate in a leadership challenge as early as next week.
“Abbott’s growing unpopularity has little to do with his climate policies. The public is angry about a badly executed austerity budget … cuts to education and health have left Australians feeling shortchanged. pundits are describing his leadership as ‘terminal.’ … ‘If the leadership changes, then this will result in a more constructive approach to climate change policy,’ said Frank Jotzo, the director of the Centre for Climate Economics and Policy at Australian National University.”
Among developed countries, only Saudi Arabia’s climate policies are worse than Australia’s. The latter, of course, is a major coal supplier to China. The fact Australia’s economy is heavily dependent on resource extraction explains how someone like Abbott became the country’s leader. His departure, and a more enlightened climate policy from the Australian government, would be a welcome development for the entire world.
Photo: Australian PM Tony Abbott bears an uncanny resemblance to Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. They think the same, too.
