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Speaker 1: The government's released its climate strategy, it's pillars strategy. The

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Speaker 1: pillars focus on infrastructure, community preparedness, market support for the transition,

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Speaker 1: clean energy, tech and nature based solutions, but critics say

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Speaker 1: it doesn't give much explanation on how these goals will

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Speaker 1: be achieved, and climate activists have gone out and called

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Speaker 1: the strategy and I apologize, about as useful as teats

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Speaker 1: on a ball. So Climate Change Minister Simon Watts joins

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Speaker 1: me right now, Halla.

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Speaker 2: Simon, morning, Andrew, great to be here.

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Speaker 1: Is it vague and as if it is vague, have

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Speaker 1: you worded it vaguely strategically.

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Speaker 2: Well, it's a strategy, Andrew, and a strategy focuses on

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Speaker 2: the big dots that we want to focus on as

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Speaker 2: a country. The detailed plan will be coming in the

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Speaker 2: next two weeks and we'll be very clear with that.

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Speaker 2: We need to set the big dots that we're going

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Speaker 2: to focus on as a country and we think that

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Speaker 2: we've got those dots in the right place.

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Speaker 1: So you've got some big dots. But of course your

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Speaker 1: government likes also to measure results. How will SEECESS be measured?

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Speaker 2: Well, the plan that we've got will be measured in

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Speaker 2: two ways. By the end of next year will be

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Speaker 2: our first budget deliverable point, so we'll have targets that

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Speaker 2: we have to hit by the end of next year

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Speaker 2: and then again at the end of twenty thirty and

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Speaker 2: both of those prime ministerial budget targets that have been

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Speaker 2: set and that's what we aim to deliver.

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Speaker 1: So you'd have a target for one of those things,

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Speaker 1: which says minimizing the costs of reducing emissions.

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Speaker 2: We've got targets for the amount of emissions that we're

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Speaker 2: going to reduce by the end of next year and

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Speaker 2: then by the end of twenty thirty and those are

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Speaker 2: within domestic legislation. So the plan and the strategy that

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Speaker 2: we've outlined will ensure that we hit those targets.

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Speaker 1: So the targets are already reduced, and if you hit them,

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Speaker 1: therefore you've reduced your emissions. Therefore you've hit your target.

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Speaker 2: Well, that's the plan. We need initiatives to make sure

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Speaker 2: that we're going to reduce emissions to hit those targets,

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Speaker 2: and we've got a clear plan that's going to outline that.

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Speaker 2: But in addition to that.

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Speaker 1: How do you measure How do you measure things like

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Speaker 1: empowering communities.

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Speaker 2: Well, the adaptation conversation is one that we haven't heard

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Speaker 2: much about under the last government. The reality of the

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Speaker 2: floods and wire we know all of that stuff, but

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Speaker 2: we need a clear plan as a country to deal

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Speaker 2: with the impacts of climate change that we're facing today

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Speaker 2: alongside what we're going to do around reducing emissions. But

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Speaker 2: we need to be focusing on both aspects, not just

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Speaker 2: on the mitigation.

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Speaker 1: So we've got the strategy, when do we get the policies.

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Speaker 2: It's a detailed policy. The Mission's reduction plan will be

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Speaker 2: consulted on within the next two weeks, so not long

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Speaker 2: to wait. That'll have a detail overview in terms of

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Speaker 2: the key drivers of emissions, information around our policies, around

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Speaker 2: the emissions trading scheme and how that will pulls together.

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Speaker 2: That'll get us from here to the end of twenty thirty.

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Speaker 2: And that's the detail that will support the strategy that

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Speaker 2: I published yesterday.

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Speaker 1: Is twenty thirty still the big goal.

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Speaker 2: Twenty thirty is the major milestone in the short term.

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Speaker 2: It's only seventy eight months away, So while it feels

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Speaker 2: like in some ways a long way away, it actually

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Speaker 2: is in terms of the actions required. We need to

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Speaker 2: hit twenty thirty and then we move on from there.

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Speaker 2: But we need to balance off the actions we're taking

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Speaker 2: with supporting our economy, making sure they're a productive and

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Speaker 2: you know we're pushing that through in a pragmatic and

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Speaker 2: sensible way.

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Speaker 1: Hime A Change, Minister Simon Watson, I thank you for

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Speaker 1: your time.

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