Teens won’t take climate change case to High Court
The eight students who won, then lost their court case to make the Australian government protect children from climate change have confirmed they won’t take the case again in court, but have claimed public shaming of the coalition as a moral victory.
After winning their case last year, the decision that Environment Minister Susan Ley had a duty of care to children from future harm caused by climate change was overturned in Federal Court in March.
The judges’ official reasons included that Ms Ley wasn’t required to protect people from climate change under federal environment laws.
They also said there was insufficient closeness and directness between Ms Ley’s actions and the risk of harm to the students, and that her decisions only had a tiny contribution to the overall risk of climate change.
The students have since confirmed that taking the case to the High Court was out of the question for several reasons, including cost, as reported by Yahoo!News.
In a joint statement, the students criticised Ms Ley’s use of taxpayer money to pay for the legal fight against teens calling for protection from the harms of fossil fuel consumption.
“We urge the environment minister, and by extension, all members of parliament and candidates, to listen to the voices of young people … who are begging for more comprehensive action on climate change and urgent action to reduce carbon emissions,” they said.
They also hope voters will remember the debacle when they vote at the upcoming Federal Election.
Anjali Sharma, one of the students involved who will turn 18 days before the election, said she will feel a deep sense of satisfaction when she gets to vote for the first time.
“For me, ticking that box is going to be a feeling that my voice is finally being heard, and not actively ignored,” she told AAP.
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