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 Home News Politics
Say Yes to a price on Carbon Pollution Rallies02 June 2011Say Yes Australia is a broad and historic partnership project of leading civil society organisations representing workers, youth, the environment and the community. Organisations involved include the Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF), Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU), GetUp! and the Youth Climate Coalition along with many others.
Across Australia from the 30th May - 5th June people will be standing up and saying YES. There will be large events in every major capital city on 5th June at 11am (1pm in Brisbane and 1.30pm in Canberra), or you can run an event in your community throughout the week.
Then we can reduce carbon pollution and invest in new, cleaner technologies. And that means new industries and new jobs for Australian innovators. We can build a secure future powered by the wind and the sun. It means cleaner air and better health for our kids, elderly, everyone. And Yes to finally tackling climate change. Right now, our economy is too dependent on energy sources that cause pollution. It's damaging our health and making climate change worse. The best way to cut carbon pollution is to put a price on it. Australians can achieve great things when we put our minds to it. If we decide to cut pollution and build clean energy we will make a success of it. Our future is bright, the time is right. So let's say Yes Australia. LOCAL COMMUNITY ACTIONS You can say Yes too!! This year our political leaders will make some important decisions. The Yes movement is a new collaboration of positive people. We're sick of hearing "No, it can't be done." We're working together with the community and leading organisations to say Yes to a price on carbon pollution and a cleaner Australia. We want to fix big problems and feel awesome in the process. If you're saying Yes too, join us. If you can't attend a rally on June 5th you can do something in your own community. We encourage you to get as many people together to publically say YES, perhaps you can make a human YES sign. You could visit your local MP or hold a stall in your local mall to let people know you will be saying yes. LET US KNOW WHAT YOU ARE PLANNING AND WHAT RESOURCES YOU MAY NEED. How does a price on pollution work? First, understand that big polluters pay, not individual taxpayers. Make no mistake, it's a tax on the biggest polluting companies. We're talking big end of town. Can you believe all this time, they've been polluting our air for free? Putting a price on pollution means now they'll have to pay. Imagine if a builder dumped their rubbish over your neighbour's fence and walked away at the end of the job. You just expect them to clean it up. It's part of the job. Paying for their pollution means those big companies will have a reason to clean up their act - because we're rewarding the ones who go clean. Then big power users and generators will use more clean, renewable energy. And that will help make clean cheaper. For everyone. And the money that's raised from the price on pollution? Where does it go? Well, it's no slush fund. We can't trust big business to play fair. That's why we need to make sure the Government gives a fair share of the money straight to households - in cash and through energy saving programs. The rest of the money should be invested in building workers' skills for the 21st century, and more clean energy. SAY YES TO CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES Wind, sun, wave, geothermal - Australia has some of the best clean energy resources in the world, better than most of our competitors. With this natural advantage, Australia can do great things. Imagine. Powering our country with the sun and wind is not pie-in-the-sky. It's not hypothetical. The technology is available now. Ready to go! And the resources will last forever. SAY YES TO NEW JOBS Who will install all those solar panels and refit our houses? Unlocking Australia's clean energy economy will create hundreds of thousands of jobs. The head of Australia's trade unions - the ACTU - is calling for a price on pollution. Do they care about jobs? More than anyone. Acting now (not later) means gradual, well-planned change for workers and businesses. Let's invest some money raised by pricing pollution in workers' skills and training. Then we'll be ready. Yes we can build it and make it better. SAY YES TO A HEALTHY ECONOMY Some people say we should just sit back and do nothing. But that's not the Australian way. Let's not fall behind the 30 European countries and major US states like California, who've already put a price on carbon pollution. Let's not miss out on the booming $243 billion global clean energy market. Most Australians would agree shouldn't let other countries make our important decisions, we should do what's best for Australia. SAY YES TO MAKING POLLUTERS PAY Did you notice the scare campaign? Some people are afraid of change, of losing benefits they've enjoyed for decades - like the right to pollute our air for free. They are naysayers. They always say NO, they always say DELAY. They have their own interests, not the national interest, at heart. They're the same multinational companies that spent millions on ads to defeat the mining super-profits tax. Remember? They cried poor, scared politicians, killed the reform, and then...declared record billion dollar profits! SAY YES TO HEALTHY AIR FOR OUR KIDS More and more pollution is not safe for our children. We all have to breathe this stuff in. Cutting pollution will protect our health, especially for children and older Australians, who are most at risk. We need to force big business to cut carbon pollution. It's damaging our health and holding our economy back. If they pollute our air, they pay, and the money goes to a better way of doing things. For our kids and grandkids. For everybody. For more information you may wish to visit the Say Yes Australia website or download a Fact Sheet below or the 7 Good Reasons poster. Download File: |
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