The Climate Change Authority (CCA) yesterday recommended the 20 per cent level of the target be kept but said it could be met three years later than 2020.

Talks between the Government and Opposition to reach a compromise on changes to the RET have stalled.

But the Opposition's environment spokesman, Mark Butler, told AM he expected negotiations to resume in January.

"We do need to see a change in position from the Government, a change from the Prime Minister's position either to abolish the target altogether or to severely cut it back," Mr Butler said.

"Both of those options the Climate Change Authority says in their report would be very, very unwise options."

The CCA review found the centrepiece of the Government's direct action climate policy, the $2.55 billion Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF), would alone be unlikely to lead to an emissions cut of 5 per cent on 2000 levels by 2020.

It said a "robust" renewable energy target must be left in place to help meet the emissions reduction goal.

"The general erosion of bipartisan support for the RET and heightened speculation around the large-scale RET has flattened investment in the sector - there is now some doubt that the target can be achieved in 2020," the report said.

A spokeswoman for Environment Minister Greg Hunt said the Government was committed to "reforming the RET" and would continue to seek bipartisan support for a "real 20 per cent" target.

The Energy Supply Association said even a bipartisan agreement on the future of the RET would not be enough to restore confidence in renewable technology, and a long-term and credible strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions was still required.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-12-23/labor-says-climate-report-shows-need-for-ret-retention/5984408

Unfortunately, global warming won't stop tomorrow because Tony Abbott does not believe in it... Einstein spent 30 years of his life trying to disprove that Quantum mechanics was wrong... Einstein did not succeed. Tiny Abbott is no Einstein either.

When Prime Minister Tony Abbott shuffled the government's ministry at the weekend he should have blackballed himself as minister for women.

The demotion would be performance based. He is out of date and behind the times when it comes to women and the modern family.

His appointment of himself as the Minister for Women was always seen as a cynical PR stunt, designed to compensate for the many gaffes he has made about women over the years, including the gobsmacking comment in 2010 that what "housewives of Australia need to understand as they do the ironing is that if they get it done commercially it's going to go up in price, and their own power bills when they switch the iron on are going to go up".

He has desperately tried to curb his old-fashioned views about women because pre-election polling showed it was hurting him. But a question on breakfast television on Monday morning shows his attitude hasn't changed at all.  Asked what his biggest achievement as Minister for Women was, he replied getting rid of the carbon tax because "as many of us know, women are particularly focused on the household budget".

Guess what Mr Abbott, not all women manage the household budget, do the shopping or even cook. In my case, I don't shop, manage the household budget or do the cooking. I share household chores with my husband, who works full time. It is based partly on ability; he reckons I can't cook. Gender doesn't come into it.

Monday's events follow ignorant comments made by Mr Abbott back in March, when he said Australia had "smashed just about every glass ceiling". He didn't leave it at that. He said "anyone who is in Australia has won the lottery of life, and if you look at our country and the deal that it gives to women, it is obviously pretty good".

As long as you don't try to overshadow him with brilliance, Annabel, Miss O'Genie Toinette will burn you a steak and sausages to a perfect carbon black crisp without charging you a carbon tax, though you could be a vegetarian.

People like Tony are closet misogynists, that is to say they like women's company as long as these are below their male station and look pretty (or have loads of cash and iron ore). Should these closet misogynists be outdone by cleverer women, they hate it like you would not believe... It becomes a fist fight... 

Just in case you missed it, seeing as you were probably stuck in your home's dungeon ironing Christmas sweaters all day, a quick recap: during an interview on The Today Show yesterday morning, host Lisa Wilkinson asked the PM what he considered his top achievement as Minister for Women so far.

His now infamous response? The Carbon Tax repeal.

"Well, you know, it is very important to do the right thing by families and households," Abbott said. "As many of us know, women are particularly focused on the household budget and the repeal of the carbon tax means a $550 a year benefit for the average family."

Well, the internet has responded accordingly. Overnight, the hashtags '#ThanksTony' and '#PutYouIronsOut' were trending, as people took to Twitter to give Abbott's statement the sound mockery it deserved.

http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-culture/the-best-reactions-to-tony-abbotts-top-achievement-as-minister-for-women-20141223-12cmxm.html

Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions dropped 1.4% in the second full year of the carbon price – the largest recorded annual decrease in the past decade.

Data released by the Department of the Environment (pdf) showed that emissions in the June quarter rose 0.4%. However, annual emissions to June 2014 dropped 1.4%.

This period includes the second 12 months of the carbon pricing system, which was introduced by the previous federal government in 2012. The Coalition fulfilled an election pledge by abolishing carbon pricing in July.

Emissions reduction accelerated during the two-year span of carbon pricing, with emissions edging down by 0.8% in the first 12 months of the system.

The latest greenhouse gas inventory showed emissions from the electricity sector, the industry most affected by carbon pricing, fell 4% in the year to June.

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/dec/24/australia-records-biggest-emissions-drop-in-a-decade-as-carbon-tax-kicks-in

The CARBON PRICING WORKED... Miss O'Genie's "direct action" is deigned to reverse all the benefit and give "expensive" cash to polluters to "pollute less" in ways that are iffy to control or monitor...

According to the SMH (30/12/14) Miss O-O'Genie, Tonette Turdy, (well, the paper only calls him the PM in the teaser, Gus adds the endearing embellishments) believes that "the disappearance of AirAsia Plane may be a tragedy, but doesn't believe it's an atrocity"... What a cumbersome way to express something he has no way to know anything about. 

The AirAsia disappearance is likely TO BE a tragedy. beyond this it's pure speculation to know what happened. 

read more on this tragedy: http://www.smh.com.au/world/airasia-flight-qz8501-final-communications-from-pilot-of-missing-plane-revealed-20141229-12fa33.html

Meanwhile we are advised by the same paper that "Women on Boards Go Backwards". 

The number of women on government boards has slipped below the 40 per cent target and a new report says men made up 75 per cent of new appointees within Tony Abbott's own department of Prime Minister and Cabinet this year.

The Prime Minister, who is also the Minister for Women, has assured voters that he is committed to the gender diversity target but the Opposition says the statistics should "set the bells ringing".

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/women-on-boards-go-backwards-20141229-12f1xi.html

Yep Tonette, the ALARM BELLS are ringing... Time to sack yourself for incompetence, infantility, lying, bullying, ignorance and many other stupid doings that "may be" not sins in your religious beliefs or political ideology — but are total crap in serious government. 

----------------------

2014 was the warmest year on record, with global temperatures 0.68C (1.24F) above the long-term average, US government scientists have said.

The results mean that 14 of the 15 warmest years on record have occurred since the turn of the century.

The analysis was published on Friday by Nasa and Noaa researchers.

Last month, the World Meteorological Organization released provisional figures that predicted the past 12 months were set to be record breakers.

The long-term global average temperature is calculated from data collected between 1951 and 1980.

"This is the latest in a series of warm years, in a series of warm decades," said Gavin Schmidt, director of Nasa's Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-30852588

Tony Abbott is an iddiott...