taxpayer handouts to fossil fuels

From Greenpeace

Dear ,

Last week, thousands of Australians joined the petition calling on Treasurer Wayne Swan and Kevin Rudd to end John Howard’s legacy of taxpayer handouts to fossil fuels. And from the overwhelming amount of feedback we received, the simple fact that renewable energy gets 28 times less government support than climate change-causing fossil fuels, surprised and outraged many of you.

And the general public agrees too. A Newspoll survey commissioned by Greenpeace has revealed that 78% of Australians don’t even know that fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil receive a lot more public money than climate solutions like solar and wind. Staggeringly, 90% of Australians want to see either equal or more money going into renewables than fossil fuels and 84% want this to happen in the next 12 months.

Greenpeace is in Canberra this week, raising the profile of the subsidies scandal. We’ve received coverage in newspapers across the country and I was interviewed by Fran Kelly on ABC radio on Tuesday morning. You can find photos of our cheeky campaign launch in Canberra, as well as details on the poll results on our website.

With the budget just eight weeks away, this campaign is building momentum, and we’re starting to see mainstream media exposure. It’s working. But word of mouth is the most effective way of getting the public groundswell of support we need. Will you forward the original email below to your friends, with a personal message urging them to get involved?

We’re talking about $803 per average taxpayer fueling climate change. An independent academic report we commissioned has uncovered some of the dirty details, many of which were buried under technical jargon and hidden in different government policies…

Perhaps the most scandalous waste of money uncovered is a $308 million dollar annual tax break for multinational coal companies to cover their fuel bills. This single handout alone is more than the entire amount the Federal Government invests in renewable energy. Considering some of these companies have profits in the billions, and their executives are paid eight figure salaries, the question must be asked: why are our hard-earned taxes icing their cake – and fueling climate change at the same time?

Together, we can change this. Australians elected Kevin Rudd and Labor in part because they said they were serious about tackling climate change. But considering the powerful vested interests involved, there is no guarantee they will automatically break with Howard’s legacy of funding climate change. Let’s show we, the people, can be powerful too.

Spend a few seconds signing the petition and let the new Treasurer Wayne Swan know you don’t want your taxes fueling climate change. It’s urgent, as there is less than 10 weeks to the budget in May.

www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org

We’ll be delivering the petition to Treasurer Swan next month and we’re working hard to expose this issue in the media – but the best way to get attention is to have thousands of Australians onboard. Adding your voice to the petition – and sharing this with your friends and colleagues – will make all the difference.

www.stop-fueling-climate-change.org

Hundreds of thousands of Australians are reducing their personal impact on the climate. All we’re asking of our Government is to match our level of concern and make sure our taxes are supporting the clean energy solutions, not the problem.

Thanks for being involved,

Julien Vincent
Climate Campaigner
Greenpeace