Undemocratic
So says Tony Abbott. I think he may be right, since giving the power to levy taxes or change tax rates to an unelected body sounds pretty dangerous to me:
TONY Abbott has rejected the latest climate change report from economist Ross Garnaut as an assault on democracy, warning that it proposes to give a committee of unelected appointees the power to set tax rates.
“There is a developing democratic deficit here,” he said. “First of all the Prime Minister wasn’t upfront with the Australian public before the election. Now the idea that taxes in this country should effectively be set by people who are outside the parliament, and who are not accountable to the people, I think, is just odd.
“This just goes to show how out of control the government is on this whole climate change question.”
Later, the Opposition Leader continued his attack in question time, noting that the report said: “Australian households will ultimately bear the full cost of a carbon price”.
“So how can (the Prime Minister) continue to maintain that her tax only makes big polluters pay?” Mr Abbott asked parliament.
“Who pays? Big polluters or households? The truth is: households.” (source)
Australian Climate Madness 
Abbott is right. But he and most are missing the 2nd biggest danger inherent in Garnaut’s proposal (after the curtailing of democracy, that is).
The “independent” Carbon Bank.
With the power to borrow against future CT revenues.
A fast way to hand not only current, but future taxpayer revenue to the banksters from Day 1 .. even before the transition to their preferred non-fixed-price emissions trading scheme.
In light of the GFC, and the way TBTF banks privatised profits and socialised (massive) losses, allowing this is a sure way to grant banksters the power to loot and pillage this nation into a perpetual bankruptcy.
More here –
The Govt are attempting to put some space between themselves and the actual decision of the % of the tax. If they keep the responsibility of pricing the tax at arms length, they can blame someone else when it all goes pear shaped. Thats why Gillard sent a shot across the greens bows a month or so ago. Deflection of blame, thats the name of the game.
At the end of the day, it wont matter, from what I hear and read, people cant wait to get rid of the current govt, so no matter what they do between now & the next election, they will be gone.
So now our beloved Labor/Green alliance government wants to give a third party the power to set a tax rate. A party that is not elected by the people and not answerable to the people. Reminds me more of communist Russia or China where the unelected and unanswerable Communist Party has total control. Chairman Bob would be happy with that precept but I doubt many Australians would agree.
I hate to say it, and obviously the world is going to end, or hell freeze over, because it seems I agree with something Ross Garnaut has to say, namely his statement you quoted above
“Australian households will ultimately bear the full cost of a carbon price”.
I think I need to sit down now…
Kind of like the EPA in the US wanting to create their own regulations, thus bypassing elected representatives.
Labor wasn’t elected for this tax since Gillard said there wouldn’t be one.. now her advisor apparently wants to absolve the government of how much tax there will be. It also seems the voters are none too happy about “un-ordinary” Australians trying to “sell” the tax.
Labor just shifts from one disaster to the next. Wonder how the opinion polls are going?
Oh, the irony of an unelected person recommending we setup more unelected panels of people to tell us what to do. Those lusting after power really find democracy a major pain in the rear, don’t they.
How about we get to vote for climate change scientists and climate change advisors? Now, that would be fun.
How quick would The Great Guano and Flim Flammery be gone if that were the case?
Like lightening to be certain.
My take on Garnaut and Gillard – http://theclimatescepticsparty.blogspot.com/2011/06/another-smelly-report.html
Also annoucement for the tour date and tickets for Lord Monckton.
Is giving the power to set tax levels to unelected representatives constitutional?