National has written to Climate Change Minister James Shaw calling for him to extend the report-back time on the Climate Change Commission Report, National’s Climate Change spokesperson Stuart Smith says.

“We all want an Emissions Reduction Plan that addresses the environmental challenges we face in New Zealand, but in order to do this we must allow submitters and the Commission enough time to reflect and respond to issues raised,” says Mr Smith.

“National commends the work of the Commission thus far and acknowledges the enormity of the task of building a plan to tackle climate change. Having supported the forming of an independent Climate Change Commission, we are invested in ensuring the eventual Emissions Reduction Plan is ambitious, but achievable.”

There have been a large number of submissions from expert organisations that have raised concerns with how the Commission has modelled the New Zealand economy. Among the 10,000 submissions received, concerns have been raised by the likes of Contact Energy, Trust Power, DairyNZ, and BusinessNZ.

“An extension from the current date of 31st May, to 31st of August, would allow the Commission time to update its economic modelling and provide more detail on the policies it has recommended.”

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