New Australian Prime Minister pledges to scrap green taxes
AUSTRALIA’S Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott yesterday said his first priorities are to scrap a tax on carbon emissions and stop asylum seekers arriving by boat.
London-born Abbott ended six years of Labor party rule when his right-wing Liberal-National coalition claimed a landslide victory in Saturday’s general election.
He spent yesterday in meetings with civil servants, planning how to implement a manifesto that mixes austerity with a pledge to substantially expand the availability of federal childcare.
But Abbott, the son of a labourer from Newcastle upon Tyne, could struggle to get his policies through the country’s Senate where the Green party holds the balance of power.
Kevin Rudd, the outgoing Prime Minister, has confirmed he will step down as Labor leader.