Mackey Moana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Mackey Moana: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Sitting date: 20 September 2012. Volume:684;Page:5507. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
6. 
MOANA MACKEY (Labour) 
 to the  
Minister for Climate Change Issues 
: What advice has he received about the impact of the Government’s proposed changes to the Emissions Trading Scheme contained in the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading and Other Matters) Amendment Bill on forestry and what impact will these changes have on the Government’s ability to meet its stated target of a 50 percent reduction in New Zealand greenhouse gases emissions from 1990 levels by 2050? 
Hon SIMON BRIDGES (Acting Minister for Climate Change Issues) 
: 
 I have had a broad range of advice in various forms including the regulatory impact statements and meetings with officials and foresters. In general terms the introduction of offsetting in this bill will be highly beneficial for foresters. It is also true that in the short term some of the proposed changes may reduce incentives for forestry especially where we are proposing to mitigate costs and burden on households and business but forestry is a long-term game so I am advised that changes in the bill are unlikely to have a significant impact in terms of a 2050 target. 
Moana Mackey 
: Is he aware that as a result of the current low cut-price of carbon of less than $5 not only is no new planting being planned but deforestation is accelerating as carbon foresters exit the emissions trading scheme; if so why is New Zealand the only country that has not restricted or banned removal units from our emissions trading scheme to stop us becoming a dumping ground for hundreds of millions of these cheap units? 
Hon SIMON BRIDGES 
: In fact units and the price of units worldwide are a product of the global response and what is happening. The fact of the matter is that the member is wrong in her assertion. Even those who are critics of the Government are saying that the forestry industry is not going to fade away that replanting will occur and that it is a long-term gain that is here to stay. 
Moana Mackey 
: How can he claim that the price here in New Zealand is as a result of the global response when even an increase in the European carbon price would not stabilise the price in New Zealand and when the cheap international units which are or will be banned in every other scheme will have nowhere to go but New Zealand thereby collapsing the value of our carbon price evidenced by the fact that thanks to these restrictions Europe currently has an effective carbon price of $11 compared with $3 in New Zealand? 
Hon SIMON BRIDGES 
: The Government recognises that the current low global carbon prices may affect incentives in this area. It is important to note that these low carbon prices—as I have already said—reflect the current level of global effort. The Government could intervene in the short term to raise carbon prices to affect these incentives but it has made the decision that now is not the time to raise costs to businesses and households during this period of economic recovery. 
Moana Mackey 
: Was the reason he backed down on the commitment he made in April to restrict cheap international units to secure the vote of John Banks who issued a press release claiming credit for the back-down saying that he had convinced the Minister to change his mind by explaining that “such a restriction on imported units would mean that no matter how low the price of carbon fell in other countries New Zealanders would have to pay the NZU price currently set [by the Government] at $25.”? 
Hon SIMON BRIDGES 
: No. 
Moana Mackey 
: Did he then explain to Mr Banks that there is no fixed New Zealand Unit price of $25 set by the Government and that Mr Banks appears to be confusing the price cap with the carbon price or are we passing a bill that will kill off the very sector we are hugely reliant on to meet our emissions targets based on the confused demands of a man who can add the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading and Other Matters) Amendment Bill to the growing pile of documents he clearly has not read? 
Hon SIMON BRIDGES 
: No.