Will the PM adopt a 2050 target before Glasgow's climate conference?

But the reaction is, in my view, not justified.

The post is a significant one. If Cormann lands the job - it's a very tough contest - this would be useful for Australia, especially as the world crawls out of the COVID-19 hole (although he'd be appointed as an individual, rather than Australia's representative).

Yes, Cormann could have travelled commercially, but COVID-19 would have made it difficult. A Zoom campaign would have been possible, but probably not have given the best chance of success.

So the government is easing his path, making available staff for his campaign as well as the plane. And the PM is lobbying anyone of significance he speaks to. Scott Morrison was in Joe Biden's ear about Cormann in his phone call congratulating the President-elect, and promoted him to the Japanese Prime Minister when they met.

But in the battle for votes, Cormann, with plenty of qualifications (a long-term former finance minister, multilingual) is carrying a big handicap. Australia is seen as a laggard on climate policy, and his own credentials on the issue go against him.

Only too aware of the problem he has, Cormann is taking on as much of a green tinge as he can to assist him in his campaign.

In his "vision statement", Cormann says: "Climate policy responses will increasingly need to factor into long-term planning", and "we must get to zero net emissions as soon as possible".

The Australian Greens are lobbying OECD countries not to support Cormann.

Greens leader Adam Bandt has written to them, saying Cormann's record on climate change "has been to block action at every turn".

While Cormann works to convince the OECD he'd be in tune on climate policies, Morrison, driven by his own political needs, is slowly repositioning his government on the issue. Morrison knows he'll be operating in changed circumstances in the next year, and he's manoeuvring to adapt to them.

Tony Abbott once famously described himself as a "weathervane" on climate policy. Morrison is a genuine weathervane on many things. And, as he looks towards 2021, he is aware Australia risks being severely buffeted unless it is seen to be more credible in its climate policy.

Biden's appointment this week of John Kerry, former secretary of state and former presidential candidate, as the US climate envoy underscores the importance the new administration is putting on the issue.

Morrison has already sought to find common ground with Biden by stressing, when they spoke, their mutual interest in elevating the role of technology in reducing emissions.

In a recent address, Morrison told business leaders the government's "ambition" was to avoid using Australia's Kyoto carryover credits (gained by exceeding previous targets) in meeting its Paris targets. The potential use of these credits has been widely criticised.

He flagged he'd have "more to say about this before the end of the year as we update our emissions projections". This suggests he knows these figures will point to a likely positive story on the carryovers.

Morrison has already pivoted from coal. It seems only yesterday that, when treasurer, he brandished a lump of coal in Parliament - but for him it's a lifetime ago. Former resources minister Matt Canavan, from the Nationals, is still spruiking the case for building coal-fired power stations, but he's baying at the moon.

As he's moved away from coal, Morrison has talked up gas excessively, inviting a mixture of condemnation and scepticism. But in practice, gas is likely to settle into a relatively modest place to help the transition to renewables.

In terms of symbols and intentions, the major test for Morrison has become whether he signs Australia up to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

You can see this target as meaning everything and not that much.

Not that much because, even acknowledging the need for long-term planning, 30 years is a time frame in which anything can happen, and a government making promises today knows it won't be around for the reckoning.

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But the target means everything because, in the current international and domestic context, accepting it would demonstrate good faith and serious intent. It would bring Australia into line with the majority of countries and - significantly - with all Australian states and territories.

How can it be that the federal government is out of step with every other Australian government? It seems ridiculous.

Morrison is crab-walking towards the target. "Looking beyond 2030 we want to reach net-zero emissions as quickly as possible and to achieve this through technology, not higher taxes," he said in his business speech.

The question is whether, pushed by international forces and the approach of an election, Morrison will adopt the target ahead of the Glasgow climate conference late next year.

Liberal backbencher and former diplomat Dave Sharma wrote this week: "Australia will work closely with Britain to make the next global climate change conference, COP26, a major step forward in dealing with climate change."

To do that, Australia will need to accept the 2050 target. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already stressed to Morrison the importance of "setting ambitious targets to cut emissions and reach net-zero".

In his nomination speech this week, Kerry said: "At the global meeting in Glasgow one year from now, all nations must raise ambition together or we will all fail together. And failure is not an option."

If Australia is not to be an outlier at Glasgow, Morrison has less than a year to move from a commitment to reach net-zero "as quickly as possible" to Australia doing it "by 2050". For him, it's not a large step; within the Coalition it's very slippery ground.