By James Grubel
SYDNEY (Reuters) - A national conference of Australia's ruling Labor Party strongly endorsed government laws for carbon trading on Saturday, cheering Climate Change Minister Penny Wong as she outlined plans to put a price on pollution.
In a move designed to increase pressure on opposition politicians to pass carbon trade laws, Wong said Labor was the only party in Australia with a plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions, blamed for global warming.
"We are a party that is prepared for the first time in Australian history to put a limit on the carbon pollution our country is producing," Wong said to loud cheers from the conference floor.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd wants laws for carbon trading, and setting an emissions reduction target of up to 25 percent by 2020, passed by parliament's upper house Senate ahead of global climate talks in Copenhagen in December.
The government needs an extra seven votes in the Senate and a vote on the laws, on August 13, is set to be defeated. The opposition, however, said it might be willing to negotiate amendments ahead of a second vote later in the year.
But Wong said opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull should support the legislation when the vote is taken in the Senate on August 13.
"In 12 days time, this country will have for the first time in this senate a vote on whether or not we are prepared to start reducing our nation's contribution to climate change," she said.
Rudd, who is well ahead in opinion polls, is due to face elections in late 2010, but he could have the trigger for an election by early next year if the carbon trade laws remain blocked by the Senate.
Australia's carbon trade scheme will cover 1,000 of Australia's biggest companies and will put a price on carbon pollution, giving business a financial incentive to curb emissions over time. Australia produces about 1.5 percent of the world's carbon emissions, but is one of the leading per-capita polluters due to its reliance on coal fired power for about 80 percent of the nation's electricity.
(Editing by Dean Yates)
