Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s talk of stepping back from Australia’s 2030 emissions targets has created confusion and concern on several fronts, and sparked vigorous political debate over our pathway to a carbon-free future.

Over the weekend, Dutton claimed Labor’s renewable energy commitment was behind steep electricity price hikes in recent years. His comments prompted a rebuke from Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who described the claims as “mind bogglingly absurd”. Meanwhile, Dutton’s suggestion of an energy policy shakeup, should the Coalition win government, has caused consternation in the business community.

Amid all this, several points need clarifying. For a start, Dutton’s claim that renewables are responsible for electricity price hikes is just plain wrong.

But more broadly, the debate misses a crucial point: the electricity sector is not the only contributor to Australia’s greenhouse gas problem. If Australia is to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, the Coalition needs to stump up with a plan to decarbonise the entire economy.

There’s a lot to unpack in the current energy debate, so I’ll start with electricity prices. Amid voter concern about cost of living pressures, Dutton claimed over the weekend that “a renewables-only approach that the government has adopted is going to continue to drive up power prices”, adding Labor did not “take into account gas and nuclear”.

First, let’s clarify that Labor’s policy has, in fact, taken gas and nuclear into account. It has........

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