Goff and Key leave door open for talks on ETS

John Key said he would meet with Phil Goff to discuss the ETS if that was what he wanted. Photo / Dean Purcell

Prime Minister John Key and Labour leader Phil Goff yesterday expressed a reluctant willingness to meet over the emissions trading scheme but neither seems prepared to make the first move.

Mr Goff is setting conditions which make any such move from National unlikely - unless National were willing to alter its deal with the Maori Party.

Labour is smarting over the fact that in the midst of negotiations between National and Labour over changes to the present ETS, National struck a pre-emptive deal with the Maori Party to change it.

And it emerged yesterday that one of the concessions National is considering in negotiations with the Maori Party for its support for the ETS is free insulation for 2000 low-income Maori homes in Northland and the East Coast.

Changes to the scheme supported only by National, the Maori Party and United Future would give the Government 64 out of 122 votes.

Mr Key said that the Maori Party deal - announced on Monday - did not prevent one with Labour. But Mr Goff has said the deal was a breach of good faith.

It also followed hard on the heels of Mr Goff's conciliatory statements at the weekend that he would be willing to discuss a capital gains tax if it were not on the family home.

Mr Key said yesterday that if Mr Goff wanted to meet him over the ETS he would attend.

He said he would prefer broad consensus on the ETS and what National was planning to introduce was fairly similar to Labour's preference.

"We are not trying to be obstinate about it. If the Labour Party wishes to re-enter negotiations with the National Government, we will be more than happy to do so."

Asked if he would pick up the phone, Mr Key said, "You never know."

When Mr Goff was asked if he would meet Mr Key, he said: "Labour would, of course, sit down again with the Nats if they came to us in good faith with the deal up for change or compromise, which does not subsidise large polluters at the expense of taxpayers."

The Maori Party compromise sets more generous terms for large industrial emitters and farmers and that will shift costs for longer onto the taxpayer - at least $400 million to 2013 it is estimated.

For the first two years, oil and power companies will have to surrender only a one-tonne carbon unit for two tonnes of emissions, and importantly for National, the changes will allow a two-year delay for farming to enter the scheme, in 2015.

The Maori Party will get a Treaty clause in the ETS legislation, though the wording of that has not been released, and the prospect of joint ventures between the Government and iwi for afforestation projects.