Australia pays fossil fuel companies $65B to take our gas and oil

smh.com.au

36 points·andrewstuart··7 comments

Fossil subsidies are indefensible at this point. Ending fossil subsidies is also a simple and clear demand. Here in the Netherlands, the government previously committed itself to end such subsidies by 2020 but didn’t deliver. Extinction Rebellion NL have made it their core issue now: https://a12blokkade.nl/index.en

Not charging tax isn't the same thing as paying them.

>Overall, the IMF found Australia granted $9.7 billion in explicit fossil fuel subsidies, such as household electricity bill relief or tax breaks for coal and gas producers.

>But there was another $55.6 billion in implicit subsidies, with taxpayers footing the bill for premature deaths and poor health caused by air pollution, as well as environmental damage and global warming.

And most of it is made up anyway.

True. Premature deaths and sickness are all made up.

/sarcasm

You can argue that these numbers are invalid but the idea that literally killing people and making them sick is made up is ridiculous.

Yep you definitely gave me the benefit of the doubt by pretending that I meant that the people didn't get sick. Not simply that the "implicit subsidies" is fictional. Good work. Solid discourse. Thanks for playing.

The government in this case gives nothing to the organisation. It simply doesnt take 65 billion that the author wants it to take. 5 billion they justify through tax breaks and the rest, they had to invent a class of subsidy that doesn't exist.

Which part is made up?

It’s considered a subsidy either way.

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