[Greens-Media] Obama chooses Chu: US will rapidly overtake Australia

[Hollo, Tim (Sen C. Milne)]

Obama chooses Chu: US will rapidly overtake Australia

Canberra, Tuesday 16 December 2008

The Australian Greens today welcomed US President-elect Obama's choice
of energy efficiency expert Dr Steven Chu as his energy secretary.

The choice of Nobel Prize winning Dr Chu will help to ensure that the
USA moves rapidly into a Green New Deal that build jobs and prosperity
through energy efficiency and renewable energy. It will dramatically
increase the pressure on Australia to follow suit.

"Dr Chu is an inspired choice who will drive the transformation in the
American economy that the Rudd Government completely failed to deliver
yesterday," Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Climate Change
Spokesperson, Senator Christine Milne, said.

"Dr Chu is a Nobel Prize winning expert in energy efficiency who is
opposed to nuclear power and deeply sceptical of coal's ability to clean
up its act.

"He will champion Mr Obama's commitment to build millions of new jobs in
the clean-tech renewable energy and energy efficiency industries that
will not only lift America out of recession but simultaneously create a
new, green economy.

"If the Rudd Government yesterday could not see the writing on the wall
for its coal obsession, today that writing has become even clearer.

"Australia needs to get with the Green New Deal, ride the wave of
change, or be swamped by it."

Tim Hollo 
Media and Communications Adviser 
Senator Christine Milne 
Australian Greens Deputy Leader
ph: (02) 6277 3588 
mob: 0437 587 562
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