Ratifying Kyoto
Kevin Rudd ratified the Kyoto Protocol as his first official act as Prime Minister just days after his November 2007 Election Victory.
Ratifying Kyoto
The first official act of the Rudd Labor Government was the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, after ten years of refusal from John Howard. Australia came in from the international fringe and became part of the solution to climate change. When Minister for Climate Change Penny Wong attended the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali shortly afterwards, the other Delegates stood to applaud.
Labor's commitment to reducing emissions doesn't stop there. The Federal Labor Party has committed to a Clean Energy Plan, in conjunction with business, to reduce Australian carbon emissions by 20% by 2020, and 60% by 2050. Labor in NSW has introduced one of the world's first and most encompassing carbon trading schemes, which as the National Emissions Trading Taskforce, is becoming the Australian standard.
Australia can't solve climate change on its own, but Labor believes we can find an international solution. Signing Kyoto was a great victory for the environment and the Labor environmentalist campaigners.