Climate Change: A Three Stage Process for Developing and Implementing Negotiated Greenhouse Agreements with Industry

This paper seeks Cabinet’s agreement to a three-stage process for developing and implementing negotiated greenhouse agreements (NGAs) with industry. The three-stage process is proposed as a means of enabling prompt completion of NGAs once their relationship to other policy options is clarified in the ratification legislation likely to be introduced into Parliament early in 2002. Certainty of regulatory framework is an issue of high importance to industry. The three stages involve a period of consultation with industry plus analysis to confirm a generic agreement framework, a heads-of-agreement stage and finally completion of an agreement.