Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has touched down in Fiji for a major climate gathering being co-hosted by Australia, as his government defends the taxpayer-funded event against criticism over its guest list and cost.
Mr Albanese arrived in Fiji on Monday for Pre-COP31, which will bring together representatives from more than 50 nations ahead of next month’s COP31 summit in Antalya, Turkey.
It is his fourth trip to the island nation as Prime Minister and he will later travel to Tuvalu for his first official visit.
The Prime Minister said Australia should be proud to co-host the event, which he said would give Pacific nations on the frontline of climate change a global platform.
“Australia is proud to stand with our Pacific family and co-host these events,” Mr Albanese said.
“It is important that Pacific voices are heard, because the Pacific is the front line of action on climate change. For many of the nations represented by leaders here, it is literally a threat to their very existence, which is why the world must act.
“This builds on the work we’ve been undertaking to boost stability, security and prosperity in the region — which is crucial to Australia’s national interest.”
But the government has faced questions over whether Australia and the Pacific have struggled to attract world leaders to the gathering, with Energy Minister Chris Bowen describing Pre-COP as typically a “pretty pedestrian affair”.
Pre-COP is part of Australia’s $147 million package to improve relations in the Pacific with about $20 million of taxpayer funds understood to be allocated to this week’s events.
Mr Bowen described the price tags as “the cost of diplomacy” but the event has been criticised for its lacklustre guest list.
“Diplomacy does come at a cost. I think it’s important to know that Pre-COP is normally a pretty pedestrian affair. To be frank with you,” Mr Bowen told RN Breakfast on Monday.
“Now, world leaders do not normally attend Pre-COP at all. Prime ministers and presidents normally do not come to Pre-COP.”
In the same defence, Mr Bowen also described the event as the “most important climate conference” the Pacific would “probably ever” hold.
“This is the most important diplomatic engagement Australia will have in the Pacific this term. This is the most important climate conference that’s been held in the Pacific probably ever, at least in a decade,” he said.
“If you care about the Pacific, if you care about our region and you care about Australia’s influence in our region, then you support this process.”
Mr Bowen said there were so far 14 heads of government or state attending alongside executives from banks, the United Nations, climate organisations, as well as current and former COP presidents.
However, only the Mauritius PM Navin Ramgoolam and the President of Timor-Leste Jose Ramos-Horta appeared to be the only non-Pacific world leaders at the proceedings on Monday.
New Zealand’s former leader Jacinda Ardern and ex-Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard were listed on the program of speakers.
He insisted there was a “good range” of climate change and environment ministers attending and more from Europe than there had been at the UN General Assembly last week.
“Climate ministers are the key negotiators for COP31. They’re the ones in the room negotiating the outcome and we have good attendance,” he said.
He said the Pre-COP would be busier than previous years, with around 4000 people attending 133 events across four days.
Mr Bowen said Australia has also sent 36 senior people to the proceedings.
“We’ve sought to elevate the importance of Pre-COP to really lift Pacific voices in the lead up to COP31, and to focus on the sorts of things that are at stake in our region,” he said.
“Obviously, we’re taking a number of journalists to try and focus world media on some of these issues.”
Opposition energy spokesman Dan Tehan criticised the government’s spending on the event during a media blitz, questioning how taxpayers would be “getting value for money” for the talk fest.
“It’s very hard to see how this in any way is getting value for money for the Australian taxpayer. And the reason we know that is because the government won’t come clean with the costs,” he told Radio National.
“They won’t tell us which world leaders are going, which aren’t. They won’t say whether they were all invited or not. The whole thing, the secrecy around it, I mean, what have they got to hide?”
He later told News24 “Australians don’t need a $150 million overseas talkfest” and called it a “vanity project” for Mr Bowen.
After criticism of Labor’s spending in the region, PM’s assistant minister Patrick Gorman on Monday reminded the Coalition of their hefty price tag under former Liberal PM Scott Morrison.
“We are really proud to be putting a spotlight on the Pacific,” he told NEws24.
“And I would just note, for everyone in the Coalition who is about to have a flick at the costs of doing this, we have got a little receipt.
“This is a transcript from Angus Taylor back in 2021 when he was at COP in Glasgow announcing some 2000 million dollars of spending for the Pacific.
“We are really proud of the work we are doing in the Pacific and I would hope that on this the Coalition can put themselves above politics and recognise that we should talk our region up, not talk it down.”
Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.
Sign up for our emails