A piece published in Carbon News this week features commentary on ACT’s proposal to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, with input from experts, including the Public Policy Institute’s economist, Dr Mohammad Salimifar.
ACT’s position statement questions the science behind the Paris Agreement. Apart from the impact on our economic and environmental stability that withdrawal would cause, there would also be consequences for our trade and foreign policy relationships.
Mohammad Salimifar, economist and deputy director of Auckland University’s Public Policy Institute, told Carbon News that weakening or exiting the Paris Agreement would isolate New Zealand diplomatically and risk trade penalties, which would be costly for our small, export-reliant nation.
“It is a symbolic populist shift that would hurt exporters without considering [either] the science nor the economics. Likewise, shifting to nuclear energy would require tens of billions in capital and decades of lead time. For a country that has been nuclear-free since 1987, it is unlikely that such a position would be acceptable to NZ voters.”
Salimifar, who is an expert on how institutions shape sustainability and climate change mitigation, said that the way both Act and NZ First are framing the issue ignores the long-term costs of reversing our Paris commitments, focusing instead on immediate budgetary benefits and populist hyperbole.
“Paris is a framework of nationally determined contributions. It doesn’t dictate New Zealand’s exact targets, so leaving the accord will not solve the perceived problems with our domestic policy design.”
If New Zealand exited the treaty, it would break trust in international cooperation and undermine the collective action needed to tackle a global problem like climate change, Salimifar said. “Well-designed national climate policies can coexist with a strong economy if they focus on innovation and practical support for farmers.”
We are grateful to Carbon News for permission to republish this excerpt. The full article was published on 3 September 2025 and is available here.
