Carbon tax repeal bill passed in Australian House of Representatives

The Australian coalition government's carbon tax repeal bill has passed in the House of Representatives due to a majority of the Liberal-National Coalition on Thursday.

"This was an important vote for Australian families, because the repeal of the Carbon Tax will create a stronger economy with more jobs and will save families 550 AU dollars (about 516.7 U.S. dollars) a year on average," Prime Minister Tony Abbott said in a statement Thursday.

"The repeal of the Carbon Tax will now go to the Senate," he added. "I want the repeal of the Carbon Tax to be passed by Christmas - and to give Australian families and businesses the help they need."

However, Labor and the Greens are expected to block the repeal of the carbon tax in the Senate, where the Coalition lacks a majority, local media said.

Tony Abbott has begun steps to scrap the carbon tax, introducing a repeal bill at the first meeting of the new parliament earlier in November.

The Coalition government has committed to implement the Direct Action Plan. In contrast to the previous Labor government's carbon price and market-based emissions trading scheme proposal, the Direct Action Plan does not charge industries for pollution.

Instead, it would establish an emissions reduction fund (ERF) paid for from the budget, which would buy emission reductions from industry and agriculture.

Australia is the developed world's worst polluter per head of population. The controversial carbon tax, which was introduced under the previous Labor government, imposed a levy on the 300 biggest polluters. It was aimed at reducing emissions by taxing major polluters with the world's highest carbon price of 23 AU dollars a tonne before moving to a market cap-and-trade system by mid-2014.