Barnaby Joyce has suggested academics at the University of Western Australia objected to Bjørn Lomborg’s “consensus centre” because his findings would jeopardise consultancy fees for climate reports and research.
The university announced on Friday night it would cancel its contract with the federal government to establish the “Australia consensus centre” and hand back $4m given for that purpose.
The education minister, Christopher Pyne, vowed to find another university to host the centre and said he was taking legal advice about the contract. Pyne accused UWA academics of “shouting down” Lomborg because they disagreed with his conclusions.
Interviewed by Andrew Bolt on Channel Ten on Sunday, Joyce, the agriculture minister, said the decision was a “disgrace” and suggested academics had been influenced by a lucrative web of climate change consultancies.
“Apparently, you’re not allowed to have fascists, Isis or Bjørn Lomborg speaking at the University of Western Australia. Obviously, they don’t believe in debate,” he said.
“Don’t stand between a bureaucrat and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of consultancy fees, and that’s the biggest threat that Bjørn Lomborg is to them, that he might actually question this unparalleled commitment to reporting about reporting about reporting for reporters’ sake,” he said.
Joyce also rejected the idea that climate change had an impact on the incidence of drought conditions in Australia, as the government announced a $333mn “top up” package of drought assistance for farmers and rural communities.
“Barnaby, the weather – let’s talk about it, then. Parts of western Queensland are now in drought. Do you blame global warming?” Bolt asked.
“No. This just – this is part and parcel of it ... since Dorothea Mackellar talked about, you know, droughts and flooding rains ... It will rain. It will rain again and those people will be back in production. We’ve got record prices in beef and sheep for them to enjoy. We’ve got to look after them until they get to that point because then they’ll deliver bucket-loads of money back into our economy,” he said.
“There’s a logic behind this. It’s not a permanent removal of rain ... You’ll have wet periods. You’ll have dry periods. Our job is to look after people, to make sure that they get back into production and we’re doing that.”
According to the Climate Council, which the Abbott government defunded, climate change is likely to be making drought conditions in south-west and south-east Australia worse.
And the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) has said that, while Australia has high natural rainfall variability, “it seems likely that drying across southern Australia cannot be explained by natural variability alone”.
But asked by Bolt about his confidence in the BoM and CSIRO and other “warmist institutions”, Joyce said they were part of a system of climate “guilt piracy” to justify new taxes.
“Well, it’s not too warm here, I can assure you,” he said. “But, look, I just – I’m always sceptical of the idea that the way that anybody is going to change the climate ... with bureaucrats and taxes. All that does is – it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. I make you feel guilty so I can get your money and put it in my pocket and send reports backwards and forwards to one another. I want to make sure that we’re effective in delivering outcomes. I’m absolutely certain that single-handedly Australia will do nothing to change any temperatures in the future ... There is an ebb and flow in temperatures all the time.”
Lomborg does not deny global warming is occurring but his method of applying cost-benefit analyses to global problems, such as poverty alleviation, usually finds that it is not a top order problem, or recommends investment in research and development rather than trying to reduce emissions.
In a statement issued on Friday night, he said, “I am disappointed that the University of Western Australia (UWA) will not be a part of this effort.
“The UWA vice chancellor found himself in an impossible position when the centre was used as a political football. The facts about Australia consensus have been drowned out.
“Australia consensus would have put the University of Western Australia at the forefront of global research efforts to improve the use of aid spending. It is deeply disappointing that UWA has lost this opportunity because of toxic politics, ad hominen attacks and premature judgment ...
“Some Australian activists have called me a climate change heretic. As one of the globe’s most vocal proponents for much more money to be spent on R&D into green energy to solve global warming, I find this bizarre.”
