Terms of Reference
That a select committee, to be known as the Select Committee on Climate Policy, be established to inquire into and report by 15
June 2009 on:
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the choice of emissions trading as the central policy to reduce Australia ’s carbon pollution, taking into account the need to:
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reduce carbon pollution at the lowest economic cost,
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put in place long-term incentives for investment in clean energy and low-emission technology, and
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contribute to a global solution to climate change;
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the relative contributions to overall emission reduction targets from complementary measures such as renewable energy feed-in laws, energy efficiency and the protection or development of terrestrial carbon stores such as native forests and soils;
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whether the Government’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme is environmentally effective, in particular with regard to the adequacy or otherwise of the Government’s 2020 and 2050 greenhouse gas emission reduction targets in avoiding dangerous climate change;
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an appropriate mechanism for determining what a fair and equitable contribution to the global emission reduction effort would be;
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whether the design of the proposed scheme will send appropriate investment signals for green collar jobs, research and development,and the manufacturing and service industries, taking into account permit allocation, leakage, compensation mechanisms and additionality issues; and
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any related matter.
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That the committee consist of 10 senators, 4 nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, 4 nominated by the Leader of the Government in the Senate, 1 nominated by the Leader of the Australian Greens and 1 nominated by the independent senators.
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That:
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participating members may be appointed to the committee on the nomination of the Leader of the Government in the Senate, the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate or any minority party or independent senator;
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participating members may participate in hearings of evidence and deliberations of the committee, and have all the rights of members of the committee, but may not vote on any questions before the committee; and
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a participating member shall be taken to be a member of the committee for the purpose of forming a quorum of the committee if a majority of members of the committee is not present.
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That the committee may proceed to the dispatch of business notwithstanding that all members have not been duly nominated and appointed and notwithstanding any vacancy.
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That the committee elect as chair one of the members nominated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate and, as deputy chair, a member nominated by the Australian Greens.
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That the deputy chair shall act as chair when the chair is absent from a meeting of the committee or the position of chair is temporarily vacant.
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That the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, may appoint another member of the committee to act as chair during the temporary absence of both the chair and the deputy chair at a meeting of the committee.
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That, in the event of an equally divided vote, the chair, or the deputy chair when acting as chair, have a casting vote.
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That the committee have power to appoint subcommittees consisting of 3 or more of its members, and to refer to any such subcommittee any of the matters which the committee is empowered to examine.
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That the committee and any subcommittee have power to send for and examine persons and documents, to move from place to place, to sit in public or in private, notwithstanding any prorogation of the Parliament or dissolution of the House of Representatives, and have leave to report from time to time its proceedings, the evidence taken and such interim recommendations as it may deem fit.
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That the committee be provided with all necessary staff, facilities and resources and be empowered to appoint persons with specialist knowledge for the purposes of the committee with the approval of the President.
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That the committee be empowered to print from day to day such documents and evidence as may be ordered by it, and a daily Hansard be published of such proceedings as take place in public.
For further information, contact:
Senior Clerk's Office
Department of the Senate
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Australia