Alan Jones' awkward moment on Q&A: "Oh my god"
Alan Jones has argued that Australia should not act on climate change on Q&A’s post-election wrap.
The 2GB host reiterated his argument that anthropogenic climate change was a “hoax” on the ABC show on Monday night.
The panel was asked if the Coalition Government will be able to bring about change in climate policy despite opposition from climate change deniers.
“What is climate change?” said Jones. “Young people are highly intelligent. They have many platforms from which they can [glean] their information and knowledge. I wonder whether they’re being told all the facts in relation to this.”
The Government has previously been “paralysed by climate change deniers” - can Scott Morrison exercise his party authority to effect change? #QandA pic.twitter.com/8A7NNgynqo
— ABC Q&A (@QandA) May 20, 2019
The broadcaster then attempted to explain how little Australia contributed to the world’s carbon emissions levels.
“It’s 0.04 per cent, and of that 0.04 of a per cent, human beings around the world create 3 per cent. And of that 3 per cent Australia creates 1.3 per cent. So, for the 1.3 per cent of 3 per of 0.04 per cent we then decide to have a national economic suicide note.”
Two weeks ago, he explained the same model in a Sky News segment with Peta Credlin using a bag of rice to illustrate his theory.
“Oh, my God,” Alice Workman, political reporter at The Australian cut in.
“Alan, Alan, Alan, Alan, I’m happy for you to have made that point which you’ve made many times on radio but it has to be answered by others, and particularly by scientists in the long-term,” said host Tony Jones to the audience’s applause.
Business leader Ming Long also criticised Jones when the 2GB host asked where businesses get their advice from about climate change.
“We listen to the scientists,” she said. “We do an analysis, not just because one party says one thing or another, we look at it from a risk perspective and we look at it from a return perspective. The return from fossil fuels is going to decline long term.
“This is not a viable investment option for our country.”
Jim Chalmers, Labor’s Shadow Minister for Finance and another member of the panel, said Australia should face the climate change issue head-on.
“We need to deal with pollution. We need to deal with rising energy costs. We want to see proper investment in renewables. As Ming rightly points out, that’s not just our view, it’s the view of the scientists, the economists, the financial institutes, the Reserve Bank.”