Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Monday stripped requirements for reducing greenhouse emissions from his centrepiece energy policy in the face of political opposition, although the country remains a signatory to the Paris Agreement. The National Energy Guarantee had mandated that greenhouse emissions from its power industry be lowered by 26 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. “The legislation to move forward with the emissions component of the National Energy Guarantee will not be able to pass the House of Representatives,” Turnbull told reporters in Canberra. The decision drew immediate scorn from critics, who argued it was meaningless to be committed to a treaty without working to hit its targets. “It’s a complete capitulation to the right wing members of the Liberal Party of Australia, who want to perpetuate Australia’s coal economy,” said Robyn Eckersley, Professor and Head of Political Science at University of Melbourne.

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