Andrew tabled a petition in the Parliament signed by 35,171 Australians which calls on the Government to introduce a Climate Disaster Levy to fossil fuel exports to ensure these companies contribute to the rising costs of climate disasters.
“Right across the country communities are being forced to come to terms with the rapidly escalating frequency, intensity and cost of climate disasters. Indeed bushfires, floods, storms, droughts and marine heatwaves are inflicting growing damage on fisheries, farms, homes, critical infrastructure and local economies.”
“In fact, climate-related disasters are already estimated to cost around $38bn a year in Australia, or about two per cent of GDP, and that figure is only expected to grow. Moreover insurance claims from extreme weather in the 2020s have averaged $4.5bn annually, about triple the levels of the 1990s. Bushfire in particular is an increasing risk in my home-state of Tasmania, with the Fire Service estimating that 98 per cent of the State is now bushfire prone, with projections suggesting a 40 per cent increase in extreme fire danger days in Tassie by 2050.
No wonder insurers are sounding the alarm. No wonder taxpayers and ratepayers are increasingly lumbered with the cost of mitigation measures and cleaning up. And no wonder households more and more simply can’t afford cover.
But at the same time, the fossil fuel companies, whose products are driving the climate crisis, pay a pittance in tax. We’ve seen this just in recent weeks, amid global energy shock and geopolitical instability, how many fossil fuel producers are recording record windfall profits.
A climate disaster levy could raise up to $100 billion each year; money that could be invested in preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery. And it’s money Australians won’t be forced to fork out to cover the damage caused by multinational companies.”