Australia’s 2035 National Climate Plan: A Robust Climate Target for Economic Certainty and Global Credibility

The report advocates for Australia to set a 2035 emissions reduction target of at least 75% below 2005 levels, aligning with a 1.5°C pathway. It argues that such a target provides the predictability businesses need for capital allocation and infrastructure investment, while mitigating risks associated with fossil fuel dependence. The authors propose a comprehensive implementation framework including sectoral pathways, a National Climate Investment and Accountability Council, and blended finance platforms to drive the transition.

• A 2035 emissions reduction target of at least 75% below 2005 levels is presented as an ambitious yet achievable and cost-effective goal that aligns Australia with a 1.5°C warming pathway.
• Achieving a 75% reduction target represents a significant economic opportunity, estimated by Deloitte Access Economics to be worth $227 billion compared to a 65% target, with the potential to create an average of 45,000 additional jobs per year until 2035.
• Australian businesses express a strong desire for a transition to renewable energy; a 2025 poll found that 77% of executives want a renewables-based electricity system within ten years, and over 75% would consider relocating operations or supply chains if the country does not transition away from fossil fuels for electricity.
• The report recommends establishing a National Climate Investment and Accountability Council comprising government, business, unions, First Nations, and states/territories to oversee five-year economy-wide carbon budgets and public progress checkpoints in 2028 and 2031.
• To ensure the integrity of the NDC, the document calls for Article 6 guardrails to prevent double-counting and ensure that international offsets do not dilute domestic ambition, requiring that any such credits be capped and additional to the domestic target.
• The proposed implementation strategy includes specific levers across multiple sectors: renewable energy zones and grid upgrades for electricity; the Safeguard Mechanism and green hydrogen for industry; fuel efficiency standards and EV targets for transport; and National Building Code reforms for buildings.
• Necessary financial architecture to support the transition includes legislating the Australian Sustainable Finance Taxonomy, requiring mandatory corporate transition plans for large entities by FY2027, and creating a public-private blended finance platform.

APA

We Mean Business Coalition (2025). Australia’s 2035 National Climate Plan: A Robust Climate Target for Economic Certainty and Global Credibility. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Australia-NDC-note_FINAL.pdf

Chicago

We Mean Business Coalition. Australia’s 2035 National Climate Plan: A Robust Climate Target for Economic Certainty and Global Credibility. 2025. https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Australia-NDC-note_FINAL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=We Mean Business Coalition |title=Australia’s 2035 National Climate Plan: A Robust Climate Target for Economic Certainty and Global Credibility |date=September 2025 |url=https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Australia-NDC-note_FINAL.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wemeanbusinesscoalition2025australias, author = {{We Mean Business Coalition}}, title = {{Australia’s 2035 National Climate Plan: A Robust Climate Target for Economic Certainty and Global Credibility}}, institution = {We Mean Business Coalition}, year = {2025}, month = sep, url = {https://www.wemeanbusinesscoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Australia-NDC-note_FINAL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }