KEY POINTS:
The Government's flagship climate change policies might emerge as little more than a "shell", with the most controversial aspects potentially decided later by the Cabinet or officials rather than by the full Parliament, say the Greens.
Announcements on an emissions trading system will be made within a month
but the more edgy aspects - such as the allocation of permits and when sectors like energy or agriculture will enter the scheme - will not be made until later.
Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons is concerned that a recent speech by Climate Change Minister David Parker suggested some of the most important details of the emissions trading system would be decided after legislation had already been through a select committee.
"The only way you can deal with it after the legislation is through Order in Council which means Parliament gets no say, it's just a Cabinet decision," Ms Fitzsimons said yesterday.
"Or worse still, regulation, which means the officials do it."
The Greens did not support such crucial issues being left to regulation and felt Parliament had to be involved, she said.
If the details were not in the legislation it left the question of what would be discussed during the select committee process.
The emissions trading system forms a crucial plank of the Government's climate change push because it is the tool that will put a price on carbon.
Who wins and loses under the scheme depends on where the Government sets the cap for emissions and at what point the liability for those emissions kicks in.
For instance, the heavy-emitting dairy sector may not be immediately involved and it is unclear whether the point of liability for emissions will be at a high level such as the dairy giant Fonterra or at a lower individual farm level.
It is understood Prime Minister Helen Clark became frustrated over a lack of co-ordination with the policy and asked her department to take a close interest in developments.
The Treasury remains deeply involved in designing the trading system. Cabinet discussed it on Monday and Helen Clark said then that the shape of decisions around it were now clear.
Asked about the Greens' concerns that the legislation might be little more than a shell, the Prime Minister said they need not have any concerns. "If it's a shell, it's the heaviest shell I've ever seen."
Mr Parker's speech this month outlined that Cabinet would initially make some in-principle core design decisions on the trading system.
The Government would then talk to people affected by the scheme to gain feedback and then make decisions before legislation was introduced.
That legislation would go through a select committee and decisions on the allocation of units and timing of entry of sectors "could be made later", he said.
Yesterday Mr Parker was giving little away about his plans, describing allocation as "one of the difficult issues".
Asked whether there would be much detail in the upcoming announcements, he said some details still needed to be worked through, but "there will be plenty" there.
Asked when a trading scheme would be up and running, or whether it would be operating before next year's election, Mr Parker said he would reveal that in a month.
