Thursday, December 10, 2009

Miners: Abbott scaremongering

Australian miners have accused Federal Liberal party leader Mr Tony Abbott of spreading blatant lies in a concerted scare campaign against action on climate change.

Mr Abbott has been in the newspapers and on the airwaves in the past 24 hours spreading blatant lies about climate change and the position of the CFMEU Mining and Energy union.

Mr Tony Maher general president of CFMEU Mining and Energy union which represents more than 20,000 coalmine workers across the country said that Mr Abbott had been deliberately dishonest about the union’s position on climate change.

Mr Maher said that “Mr Abbott has spent the past 24 hours spreading nasty lies about the union’s position on climate change. The CFMEU has long supported an emissions trading scheme for cutting carbon pollution and reducing the risk of climate change.”

Recently, Mr Tony Maher general president of CFMEU lead a delegation of rank and file working coalminers to Canberra ahead of a climate change deal between the Rudd Government and the Malcolm Turnbull lead Opposition. In Canberra the delegation met with both Opposition climate change negotiator Ian MacFarlane and senior Government ministers to outline the union’s support for emissions trading and immediate action on climate change.

Mr Maher said had Mr Abbott spent less time trying to roll Malcolm Turnbull he would have known the CFMEU Mining and Energy supports taking action on climate change through an emissions trading scheme.

He said that “If Mr Tony Abbott had spent a little less time plotting against his former leader and more time listening to real coalmine workers then he would know that coal communities support an emissions trading scheme.”

He added that “Mr Abbott is entitled to disagree with the union’s position but he is not entitled to misrepresent or lie about it.”

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