Australian Private Property Rights Abolished: James Delingpole Reports

His name is Peter Spencer, he's a farmer in New South Wales, and his livelihood has been stolen by the Australian government in the name of -- you guessed it -- "combatting climate change." That's why he is now sitting atop that windblown tower you see in the photograph, on sheep farmland rendered useless by eco-legislation, starving himself to death in protest at his government's callous disregard for his property rights. This is his 46th day on hunger strike. Jo Nova has been following the story closely. Here's the eco-political background: As a part of Australia's commitment to protect native vegetation and to reduce carbon emissions under the Kyoto protocol, Peter Spencer and thousands of farmers like him, have been subjected to a government imposed ban on land clearing. The saved trees are natural carbon sinks worth an estimated $10.8 billion to the government in reduced carbon emissions, should Kevin Rudd's emissions trading scheme go ahead. But the farmers, who can no longer develop this land have received no compensation. Peter Spencer is among the victims of this legalised theft. He first told his story here in 2006. In recent decades, thousands of farms have become economically marginal and have gone out of business. What is not widely known is that this "marginality" has often been the result not of market forces but of government regulation. In particular, governments in pursuit of urban green votes have imposed a vast range of devastating new costs on farmers ...

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YouTube | October 12, 2011

Tags:. .YouTube. .kevin. .australian. .callous. .farmland