The coalition wants to strip back Australia’s mandatory emissions reporting requirements for businesses to cut costs.
Deputy opposition leader Jane Hume will introduce a bill on Wednesday to drastically roll back climate reporting requirements she says are hitting family-run companies in the hip pocket.
Under the government’s mandatory climate and sustainability reporting regime, large companies must disclose direct and indirect electricity greenhouse gas emissions generated in Australia.
The mandate is set to be extended next financial year to capture indirect emissions in supply chains, including coal burnt overseas and energy used by suppliers.
Businesses have criticised the extension, saying it will force them to make complex calculations.
Treasury has estimated modelling could cost about $245,000 per entity in the first year, and $160,000 each year after that.
Environmental groups have praised the change as being vital for accountability, but the coalition said it would further overload businesses.
“This is an enormous red tape and regulatory burden on businesses,” Senator Hume said.
“It has got to stop because Australia’s businesses deserve a chance to get on and do what it is that they do best, and that is create the prosperity that we all need.”
She said businesses would be forced to work with larger providers that had the staffing resources to track their own emissions under the changes, putting mum-and-dad suppliers at risk.
Senator Hume also wants the government to scrap mandatory reporting for businesses with revenue from $50 million to $200 million, which are due to be added to the scheme from July 1, 2027.
The bill comes less than a week after the first climate-change-related High Court decision overturned approval for a coal mine expansion in the Hunter Valley.
Nationals leader Matt Canavan said the ruling clouded Australian production in uncertainty.
On Wednesday, the Federal Court overturned a Commonwealth decision that halted a billion-dollar gold mine near Blayney, in central-west NSW.
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