The Nationals dumping net zero is dangerous territory for the Coalition

To borrow the words of former prime minister Tony Abbott, the net zero emissions by 2050 policy for the Coalition is now dead, buried and cremated.

The Nationals have now officially euthanised the policy and the consequences electorally could be seismic in the cities. The teals, who built their political identity on climate activism against the Liberals, have been handed an electoral gift — and the political landscape will alter as a result once again.

The Nationals' grassroots members voted over the weekend to ditch net zero, which set the scene for the party to formally scrap the target at a meeting yesterday.

A motion at the meeting for the party to "abandon its support for a net zero mandate" was passed and has torpedoed a move away from what has been a bipartisan policy position