Climate disasters are projected to cost the federal budget $6.3 billion in the upcoming mid-year economic forecast this week. The Treasurer should follow public opinion and ensure coal and gas corporations responsible for most climate pollution pay for these costs, rather than forcing ordinary taxpayers to shoulder the burden, according to the Make Big Polluters Pay alliance.
Climate disasters already cost the economy $38 billion each year, with households, communities, local governments and small businesses paying to recover from extreme weather. These impacts are also driving up insurance premiums, food prices and household bills. Deloitte projects disaster costs will exceed $73 billion annually by 2060.
The Treasurer must rebalance a system where ordinary Australians pay for climate damage while coal and gas corporations pay minimal tax and royalties and continue to receive government subsidies. Nurses pay more tax than oil and gas companies.
A Climate Pollution Levy on coal, gas and oil companies could raise $46 billion a year. The Government should use this revenue to establish a Climate Compensation Fund to support communities on the frontline of climate impacts and help households manage rising climate-driven costs.
Make Polluters Pay Australia Campaign Strategic Lead, Julie-Anne Richards, said:
"The Treasurer must fix an unfair system where climate costs keep rising. While the average household insurance bill jumped 14 per cent last year, the industries driving climate change don't pay for the damage they cause.
Australia's coal, oil and gas companies often pay little or no tax, and over the past decade paid less tax than nurses. Meanwhile, everyday Australians face higher insurance, food and household bills and the growing costs of climate disasters. It's time these corporations pay their fair share."
Bushfire Survivors for Climate Action CEO, Serena Joyner, said:
"As this year of unprecedented floods, storms and more recently devastating bushfires has shown, it's our communities on the frontline of climate impacts that are paying the real cost of climate change. Australians are tough, but it's not fair that we are shouldering the escalating damage bill of rising climate disasters with little support. It's only fair that the big coal and gas corporations, who have caused climate change, contribute to the cost being faced by communities."
