Turnbull denies claim he`d quit over ETS

Malcolm Turnbull has rejected claims he told colleagues he would quit politics
altogether if his party room did not back his position on climate change.
The opposition leader has been struggling to unite the coalition in its response to
the government's proposed emissions trading scheme (ETS).
Mr Turnbull plans to negotiate with the government on its ETS despite calls from
within Liberal ranks for the scheme to be delayed or scrapped altogether.
However, he says he is not considering quitting over the issue, adding he is
committed to the Liberal Party and ensuring it plays a constructive role in the
climate change debate.
"A very substantial part of what is written about politics in Canberra is nothing
more than gossip," Mr Turnbull told ABC Television on Sunday.
"I am confident the party room will support me in that policy."
The comments follow a newspaper report that quoted a Liberal Party source as saying
Mr Turnbull had told colleagues he would walk away from politics altogether if the
party room did not back his position and the coalition loses the next federal
election.
"I'm 55 years old. In 2013 I'll be 59. The chances of winning as opposition leader
after that are remote. The Liberal Party, historically, is unsentimental on these
issues," News Limited reported Mr Turnbull as saying.
The report comes just days after Mr Turnbull slammed some of his colleagues as
"anonymous smart arses" and said he would not lead a party that was not committed to
tackling climate change.
But on Sunday Mr Turnbull said he had no intention of quitting.
He said he wanted the Liberal Party to take effective action on climate change and
was proposing amendments that would protect thousands of Australian jobs, which were
at risk from a poorly designed and flawed Labor ETS.
"I am committed to working hard to protect thousands and thousands of Australian
jobs which, if this scheme is not amended, will simply vanish from Australia and do
nothing for the environment."
Opposition frontbencher Tony Abbott said Mr Turnbull's words had been misconstrued
to suggest he would quit.
"Every leader's authority depends upon continued support from the party room (so) in
that sense, Malcolm was simply stating the obvious," Mr Abbott told the Nine Network
on Sunday.
His leadership was secure because "he's going to get his way.
"We are going to put some amendments up," Mr Abbott said.
The Southern Cross Climate Coalition, a group of key stakeholder organisations, has
warned the government and the opposition that it will not support the legislation
unless changes are made.
The group, which includes the Climate Institute, The Australian Conservation
Foundation, The Australian Council of Social Service and the Australian Council of
Trade Unions, has raised a number of concerns in a letter to the major parties and
crossbench senators.
John Connor, spokesman for the group, said the legislation as it stands is too much
in favour of big polluters.
Mr Connor said some industry groups were proposing amendments that would hinder the
transition to a low carbon economy and put a much heavier financial burden on
taxpayers.
One of the key amendments proposed by the group is an independent review of
assistance for emissions intensive trade exposed industries following the
negotiation of a new global climate change agreement.
The group also wants a greater focus on energy efficiency measures such as
incentives for commercial buildings, as well as strengthened appliance, building and
fuel efficiency standards to world's best practice levels.