Former Reserve Bank board member Professor Warwick McKibbin has called for the Federal Opposition to withdraw its pledge to scrap the Federal Government’s carbon tax, saying they should concentrate on repairing the scheme.

 

Speaking at a CPA conference, Professor McKibbin warned that the policy would inevitably fail without bipartisan support.

 

“I would advise the opposition to take whats in Parliament and fix it – don’t destroy,” Professor McKibbin said.

 

Professor McKibbin called for a long-term price fix for carbon, while saying that a long-term carbon market was essential for companies and individuals to manage their risk.

 

“What we need to do in this country is to set some long-term goals – issue permits with dates to se can actually trade these permits to 2050, 2060 and 2070,” he concluded.