Australians are divided over carbon tax

There have been protests in Australia over government plans to introduce a carbon tax.
People who are against the plans say that if other countries don’t introduce a similar tax, it
could have a negative impact on Australian jobs and businesses. Phil Mercer reports.
Protestors say they are just ordinary Australian workers and taxpayers who feel betrayed by
the government’s plans to put a price on carbon. They insist it would damage the economy
and drive up the cost of living by making energy far more expensive.
Man 1: “There is a ground swell of people that have finally had a gutful.”
Man 2: “Since the Labor government has come into this country, the union rules. We just
cannot do it anymore. We have no more money left to pay the taxes.”
Reporter: The demonstrators have the support of the conservative opposition leader, Tony
Abbott. He says that without a global carbon pricing agreement, Australian businesses would
be less competitive:
Tony Abbott: “A one-sided carbon tax, a unilateral carbon tax is an act of economic selfharm.”
Woman: “Here we have 12,000 signatures supporting action on climate change.”
Man 3: “12,000. Fantastic.”
Reporter: Supporters of the tax believe it will cut pollution in Australia, which is one of the
world’s worst per capita emitters of greenhouse gases, and will also encourage the
development of a low-carbon economy.
The Prime Minister Julia Gillard says that opposition won’t derail the plan:
Julia Gillard: “Now, I understand there’s always going to be a variety of views in the
community. We’ll see that on display today, but pricing carbon is the right thing for our
nation’s future and that’s why I am determined to do it.”
Reporter: The Prime Minister hopes to bring in a tax on carbon next year, before introducing
an emissions trading scheme as early as 2015. She insists that without these key economic
reforms, Australia will be left behind by its international competitors.
Phil Mercer, BBC News, Sydney

Vocabulary and definitions

betrayed	hurt by someone who you believed supported you and your ideas
carbon	here, fossil fuels such as coal, petrol and natural gas; they produce carbon dioxide when burned and this damages the environment
drive up	force to rise or increase
a ground swell	fast growth or shift (of opinion)
had a gutful	had enough of, or become fed up with the situation
union	trade union, an organisation representing workers, which tries to achieve common goals
unilateral	one-sided, not agreed by everybody involved in a debate
per capita	per person
emitters	producers
emissions	here, harmful gases which are released into the air by burning fossil fuels

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