In what could only be described as surreal, the Coalition government, with the Palmer United Party (PUP), Senators Muir, Madigan and Xenophon, agreed an 18-month review to look into creating an Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).

And surreal it is, as this is the government that only months ago repealed the carbon tax (i.e. – fixed price on carbon), which was due to move to a floating ETS price anyway from June this year!

The difference with PUP version of the ETS is that it would operate with a fixed $0 price on carbon, until Australia’s ‘top 5 trading partners’ also had an ETS – presumably not one also at a zero price.

The Climate Change Authority has not been axed, as was foreshadowed earlier this year, so there certainly has been one silver lining in the whole announcement.

But with taxpayers forking out $2.5 billion to polluters to reduce their emissions, it seems more like a corporate welfare exercise, rather than a real solution to climate change.

More via ABC: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-29/direct-action-set-to-pass-senate/5851914