The Australian elections threw up a huge surprise in a very conservative vote for the Liberal-National coalition under Prime Minister Scott Morrison to continue in what will be a first full term for him. The vote was against Labour’s proposals to curb carbon emissions in ultra-expensive efforts to curb climate change and halt global warming. These may be desirable outcomes for mankind, but were projected to come with 1.5 lakh job losses and need hundreds of billions of dollars in financing. The nod for a Donald Trump fan to stay in the PM’s office in Canberra is another endorsement for the Right in a new global trend — as seen in Brazil, Italy, Hungary and perhaps India. India’s Opposition, longing for government change than climate change, may view the Australian results longingly as exit polls and a year of forecasts of the government falling proved totally off the mark.
Australia’s results may be good news for the Adani Group, whose proposed Carmichael coal mine — the world’s largest — promises the creation of thousands of jobs. It means that Queensland will stay committed to burning “dirty” coal to satisfy the nation’s growing energy needs, as it has grown steadily for years, with recession unknown for decades. There may be a message in the Australian vote for those like Canada’s Justin Trudeau, who may have been toying with the idea of becoming warriors against climate change and global warming as it doesn’t seem to work in the hardcore political space. Voters, in what was seen as a “climate change” election, may have stumped analysts and the underlying message is that while change is always talked about, it’s not necessarily as easily brought about.
