Climate change should be depoliticised

September 9, 2026

Bob Brown’s article comprehensively explains the disastrous Australian and global failure to address the climate emergency. However, there is a problem related to the final sentence in the article: “The 2028 election will be the next test of the nation’s conscience.” Climate change has never been an issue that many people base their vote on. A recent survey related to the Victorian state election, funded by the University of Melbourne, found that only 12% of respondents included climate change in their top three issues. There is no reason to think these numbers will change significantly at the next federal election. My article on P&I addresses this problem. The article makes the case that as climate change is an existential threat to life on Earth it is above politics, is not an ideological issue, and should be addressed external to politics.