“The whole Climate Change Commission process of providing long term recommendations to the Government should be halted immediately, until it can get its house in order,” says ACT Climate Change spokesperson Simon Court.

“It is simply astonishing that the workings for the conclusions the Climate Commission based its initial recommendations on won’t be made available to representatives of the industries it will impact most for at least another three months.

“It makes a further mockery of the consultation process, as the Government will have received the Commission’s final report before the modelling is released.

“The ramifications for the New Zealand economy of what the Climate Change Commission and the Government are considering could not be greater.

“They are both rushing headlong into a centrally planned response to climate change that is already killing major industries in this country.

“Just yesterday NZ Oil & Gas surrendered the last deep sea oil and gas exploration permit off the coast of the South Island.

“For the Commission to be unable to provide its modelling at the time it released its draft report shows the Commission in a terrible light – amateurish at best.

“Its recommendations have the potential to be economically and socially destructive on a scale beyond most people’s comprehension if they’ve got their sums wrong.

“Everyone should be able to review the modelling now.

“Until it is available the process must be paused.”

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