Two lies are used to promote the world's highest carbon tax - the lie that carbon dioxide is "pollution" and the lie claiming that Australians are "the world's biggest carbon polluters".

Calling carbon dioxide "pollution" makes no more sense than calling mothers' milk "poison". Yet Australia's Climate Commissioners continue to propagate this outrageous lie.

Carbon dioxide is "mothers' milk" to all plants, and plants are "the daily bread" to all animals. Life is a carbon cycle. No life could exist on Earth without adequate carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Current levels are well below those optimal for life, and below levels which have prevailed for most of Earth's history. If there is a crisis regarding CO2, it is this - "where has it all gone?"

And to say that Australians are the world's biggest carbon polluters (per capita) is lying with statistics.

Australia is one of the world's biggest exporters of minerals, energy, food and fibres. This is done on a huge continent with massive transport distances using a small workforce. Are the boffins suggesting that we should reduce our emissions per capita by employing 10,000 foreign labourers with shovels and wheel-barrows instead of one Australian on an electric dragline, one on an electric shovel, one on a diesel truck, and two driving an electric train?

Our government is punishing us for our efficiency. Carbon tax liability, if any, should fall on those who consume the resources. Those who produce the surplus for consumption by others are the heroes of society - even our federal government cannot redistribute wealth unless someone first produces a surplus to redistribute.

The economy and the climate have been cooling for years - it is stupid to keep carrying dead weights like the carbon tax, or subsidising expensive toys like green power.

Viv Forbes writes from Queensland, Australia