AN INCREASE in tobacco taxes is one option being canvassed within the Coalition to fund its greenhouse gas abatement policy to be unveiled next week. It is understood the revenue source will be discussed at today’s meeting of the shadow cabinet which will have its first look at the policy the Opposition climate change spokesman, Greg Hunt, developed over the summer. Under the leadership of Tony Abbott, the Coalition abandoned support for a ... Jump to full article >>

Damn the facts. Climate change is not happening, just like smoking doesn’t cause cancer. We all know the long history of Big Tobacco and their attempts to kill bans on second-hand smoke and their hire-a-scientist strategy to delay regulatory impact on their pocketbooks. My all-time favorite line: “I got a BA in kicking ass and taking names.” Many of the same people who worked on the tobacco front shifted gears to the issue of c ... Jump to full article >>

Starting in the early 1990s, three large American industry groups set to work on strategies to cast doubt on the science of climate change. Even though the oil industry’s own scientists had declared, as early as 1995, that human-induced climate change was undeniable, the American Petroleum Institute, the Western Fuels Association (a coal-fired electrical industry consortium) and a Philip Morris-sponsored anti-science group called TASSC all dra ... Jump to full article >>

With asthma rates on the rise, are there any steps parents can take to prevent it from developing in their children? Judith Palfrey: The worldwide increase in asthma is thought to be due to many factors, including air pollution, climate change, environmental allergens, respiratory infections, and stress. By keeping the home environment free of triggers such as dust, mites, animal dander, and cockroaches, parents can minimize the chance that c ... Jump to full article >>