In-touch PM awkwardly left out of the loop: Prime Minister John Howard is renowned for his keeping his political antennae finely tuned to shifts in public sentiment, but on this front he has been caught flat-footed as he continues to resist action to counter the problem.
Coalition backbench speaks up: And it has been realised by the Coalition backbench, which was last week forced into some backroom manoeuvring to defer a Greens bid to establish a formal government inquiry into the potential impacts of climate change on agriculture.
Next budget big on agriculture, environment: There are growing indications already that both the environment and agriculture will feature heavily in next year’s budget.
Will Costello mention climate change? But whether Treasurer Peter Costello takes the next step and mentions climate change for the first time in what will be his 12th budget will be telling for the Government’s election chances.
Queensland Country Life, 26/10/2006, p.20