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When the shock subsided - $160 to refuel the van - the reality hit home. We actually have a carbon tax of sorts, a very clear price signal, imposed by Vladimir Putin. High fuel prices are pushing the cost of everything else. To purloin a phrase, it's a great big tax on everything. And it's only going to get worse when the 22 cents per litre excise cut comes to an end in September. We been told by the Treasurer to brace for more pain at the pump. But it's what happens after September that is even more concerning. And, again, it comes down to Putin and his invasion of Ukraine.
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Europe might be sweltering right now - in some places burning - but come September it will be facing a completely different challenge: the cold. With Russia likely to turn off the gas which heats much of Europe, the coming winter is set to be miserable indeed. In Brussels, while Europe is scorched by record temperatures, work is being done on a "winter preparedness plan" but there are doubts about how effective it can be. Lurking in decision makers' minds is the prospect of Europe fracturing as countries compete for scarce energy resources.
Putin has shown no qualms about stopping grain supplies from Ukraine, no matter the effect on global food security. There's little doubt he'll do the same with gas and oil in a bid to have sanctions lifted. Last week, Russia cut gas supplies to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. Germany halted work on Nord Stream 2, another pipeline designed to supply it with Russian gas, in February. Despite the obvious catastrophic effects of climate change being felt right now, mutterings about scaling back emissions reduction targets are getting louder across Europe. Germany is reverting to coal-generated electricity. Overtures are being made to the Middle East to increase oil production.
Come the European winter, global energy prices will soar once more, fuelling inflation and putting pressure on governments to look for quick fixes and be less ambitious about emissions reduction. Alok Sharma, the UK minister who hosted the COP26 summit in Glasgow last year, has threatened to quit if the prime minister who replaces Boris Johnson backtracks on the country's net zero commitments. Putin is not only raining missiles on Ukraine, he's sowing European politics with minefields as well.
The kleptocrat in the Kremlin is probably not paying much attention to Australia but his strategy of using food and energy as weapons in the Ukraine war affects us too. The temptation to approve new gas and coal fields will be hard to resist for any government if they can bring down energy costs in the short term. But eyes should not be taken off the cost in the long term. Just like Putin, greenhouse gases do not recognise borders. The gas and coal we export will come back to bite us if the planet stays on its warming trajectory.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Is the high cost of living a reasonable price to pay for supporting Ukraine? Do you see an end in sight for the Ukraine war? Should we just stay out of Europe's problems? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews have poured cold water on NSW Premier Dom Perrottet's suggestion that the COVID isolation period be reviewed. Now was not the right time for such a review, they said, as case numbers continued to surge.
- A second cruise ship with COVID-infected crew and passengers has docked in Sydney. The P&O Pacific Explorer berthed at White Bay cruise terminal in Rozelle after a nine-night round trip to Queensland. The cruise operated at "amber" level under NSW Health protocols, meaning there were "quite a few cases on board" and the vessel's staffing and resources were impacted.
- TikTok users have been warned of "excessive" data harvesting by the social media application in a new analysis. Cyber security company Internet 2.0 accused TikTok of being "a massive security flaw waiting to happen".
THEY SAID IT: "You may gain temporary appeasement by a policy of concession to violence, but you do not gain lasting peace that way." - Anthony Eden
YOU SAID IT: On the problems facing the new PM, particularly the cost of pandemic support payments, Bod said: "Yes definitely abort the tax cuts for the wealthy and use the money for pandemic support payments."
Roger said about the mountain of national debt inherited from the previous government: "So what? What is national debt? Rational economics has been (sensibly) rejected."
You were still keen to talk about former PMs taking to the public stage. Bruny said: "I believe that former PMs should get on with the job of representing their electorate rather than swanning around the world stage lecturing others. After all they do actually have a moral employment contract with their electorate."
And your favourites? "Paul Keating always. And Julia Gillard obviously," said Heather. "As a former PM, Julia Gillard is an excellent example. Said she would withdraw from politics and did so; has gone on to a stellar career in exemplary good words. A wise woman," said Trish, who went on: "Scott Morrison? The corpse is already reeking. And let's remind ourselves, he's still in Parliament, though seems to be grabbing the salary and doing nothing for constituents."
