Speaking at Eco Forum in Sydney last week, Australia’s longest service Science Minister and long term federal president of the Australian Labor Party, Barry Jones, said that the Rudd government showed no signs of taking the necessary steps to combat climate change. He commended the analysis of Liberal whistle-blower Guy Pearce as explaining why Australian governments rule for vested interests and said, “observers could be forgiving for not being able to distinguish the Rudd government from Howard’s [in term of its position on global warming]” Jones addressed 300 local government and engineering professionals on the future prospects for Australia. Describing the developed world generally, he said, “Our governments lack the leadership and vision necessary to discard the systems that got us into this mess. Political parties have become increasingly irrelevant. They are basically job placement agencies for an ailing membership.”