When I went to school it was called the Greenhouse Effect. Because of carbon emissions, the weather was going to get hotter and wetter.
Don’t know about hotter, but they certainly stuffed up on the wetter bit.
Anyway, what is really wet is the Big Switch and their climate change survey for politicians.
The Big Switch is an umbrella group of 10 of the countries largest green groups. For more info go to www.thebigswitch.org.au
All fair enough so far. The group has sent a very basic 10-question survey to all the country’s politicians in the lead up to the federal election.
The questions are based on their agendas and they rate the politicians’ stance on climate change issues according to whether they agree with that agenda or not.
A bit dodgy, but hey it’s an election and there is a message to get out.
What is really dodgy is what they have done with these responses.
The Bendigo Weekly received a media release for the local electorate highlighting the results.
It was headed: "Steve Gibbons a switched on MP". No complaints so far.
It went on:
MP Steve Gibbons is blitzing the field of candidates for Bendigo in this year’s federal election on the critical issue of climate change after earning a high score on a national survey.
Mr Gibbons not only topped his own parties’ score, but is well ahead of fellow candidate the Liberal’s Peter Kennedy – who is yet to fill in the survey and remains on zero. The Bendigo MP is only beaten by Green’s candidate Toby Byrne.
Mr Gibbons scored 3.2 out of 5, compared to the ALP’s national score of 1.8, in The Big Switch survey that has been sent to 450 MPs and candidates and is the only barometer of individual politician’s personal views on climate change. Mr Byrne scored 5
Hang on. Steve Gibbons is blitzing the field? Only two of the four candidates handed back their responses and Steve finished second.
I thought I would take a closer look, so I looked up the Ballarat electorate and press release. Guess what I found:
Catherine King a switched on MP
MP Catherine King is blitzing the field of candidates for Ballarat in this year’s federal election on the critical issue of climate change after earning a high score on a national survey.
Ms King not only topped her own parties’ score, but is well ahead of fellow candidate the Liberal’s Samantha McIntosh – who is yet to fill in the survey and remains on zero. The Ballarat MP is only beaten by Green’s candidate Belinda Coates.
Ms King scored 3.9 out of 5 – the best so far for any ALP MP - compared to the ALP’s national score of 1.8, in The Big Switch survey that has been sent to 450 MPs and candidates and is the only barometer of individual politician’s personal views on climate change. Ms Coates scored 5.
In both cases, the Greens candidate had easily out scored their Labor opponent, but it was the Labor candidate that got the plaudits.
One must ask whether this survey and this organisation is simply interested in promoting Labor candidates ahead of their Liberal opponents.
Why else would it almost ignore the strong Greens results?
The survey itself is flawed as it doesn’t allow any room for discussion, clarification or what the candidates are doing personally to combat climate change in their homes, offices and day-to-day lives.
On this measure, I am sure the Bendigo stats would be a lot different.
Pushing these agendas this way will lead people to turn off the Big Switch.
This way of politicking creates questions of legitimacy and cover ups.
It also causes people to switch off the issue of climate change, which is dangerous and surely counter productive to what The Big Switch is trying to achieve.
Steve Gibbons might well be a climate change blitzer, but nobody is going to care because by now they would have given The Big Switch the flick.
