Paris Paves Way for Global Carbon Price, Ex-Australia PM Says
- Governments shirked responsibility pre-Paris, says Kevin Rudd
- Countries could ratify agreement at ceremony in April
Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
Photographer: Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for Concordia SummitThis article is for subscribers only.
The Paris climate accord will pave the way for carbon markets in Asia, Europe and the U.S. to link and form a global emissions price, according to Kevin Rudd, the former Australian prime minister whose climate policies helped cost him his job.
“It’s easier for emissions-trading schemes to come into place now that we have the Paris agreement,” Rudd said by phone from New York. “Prior to that we’ve had disputation across the fossil-fuel industry, with governments saying: ‘The rest of the world is not going to act. Why should we? Wash our hands of responsibility. Goodbye’.”