Australian Government Spends 2X As Much On Public Service Ads As On Climate

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The Howard government has spent more than twice as much money on advertising compared to climate change, Labor says. Labor's public accountability spokesman Kelvin Thomson said the government was about to become the first in Australia's history to spend $1.5 billion of taxpayers' money on government advertising.

Senate estimates revealed it had already spent $1.27 billion until this financial year, and a further $250 million was buried in the budget papers for 2006-2007, Mr Thomson said. "At the same time, we know the government has only spent some $670 million on climate change," he said. "So the fact is it's raining taxpayer dollars when it comes to government advertising, but there is a drought on when it comes to climate change."

Mr Thomson said the government was more than twice as keen on self-promotion and propaganda than on addressing climate change. Labor's environment spokesman Anthony Albanese said it was quite clear the government's priorities were wrong.

"Do they want in 20 or 30 years time to show books to their kids and grandkids and say `this is what the great barrier looked like ... this is what glaciers looked like before climate change arrived big time'," Mr Albanese said. "Because they have been warned by the scientists, by the economists but they still refuse to take action."

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http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Govt-spends-on-ads-not-climate-change/2006/11/02/1162339969893.html