Oz Opposition Leader Tries To "I'm Not A Scientist" On Warming Question, Then Flailingly Reverses Course
The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has insisted he “believes in climate change” a day after refusing to state if the impacts of global heating were worsening. Climate scientists, environmentalists, Labor and the Greens lined up on Thursday to condemn the opposition leader for comments he made during Wednesday night’s election leaders’ debate, which prompted renewed scepticism of the Coalition’s commitment to climate action.
Asked during the debate if the impacts of climate change – including in his home state of Queensland – were worsening, Dutton said: “I’ll let scientists pass that judgment. “I don’t know because I’m not a scientist and I can’t tell you whether the temperature has risen in [outback Queensland town] Thargomindah because of climate change or the water levels are up.”
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, seized on Dutton’s comments during the debate and again at a press conference on Thursday morning, posing the question: “Does he [Dutton] believe in gravity?” “What else is there that is a scientific fact that he needs assurance of, or a science degree, to understand?” Albanese said to reporters at a Brisbane childcare centre.
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The Coalition’s 2022 loss did not prompt a major rethink in its approach to climate policy, with Dutton’s opposition voting against Labor’s legislated emissions targets and then refusing to set a 2030 or 2035 goal of its own ahead of the 2025 election. The Coalition is committed to net zero by 2050 and claims nuclear power provides the only viable path to achieve that goal. However, the government’s Climate Change Authority has found Dutton’s nuclear plans – which would require extending the life of ageing coal-fired power stations – would make it “virtually impossible” to meet the target.
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https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/apr/17/peter-dutton-climate-change-global-heating-response-abc-debate-ntwnfb