Origin Energy signs its own death warrant...

... but then tears it up again. Origin Energy, one of Australia's largest electricity and gas suppliers, has said that Prof Garnaut's recommendations for cutting emissions don't go far enough, suggesting a 10-20% cut by 2020.

A spokesman for the Climate Institute said yesterday that the call for harsher cuts was surprising and encouraging.

That was after he's picked himself off the floor... But (there's always a "but"), here comes the punchline:

However, like many other energy producers, Origin said it feared what an emissions trading scheme could do to its bottom line if not all costs from an ETS could be passed on.

In other words, we're very happy to recommend a 20% cut in emissions by 2020, so long as we don't have to pay for it. Guess who will, however? You and me and every other customer of Origin in Australia. Typical.

Read it here.