Dear Mr Hartzer

I congratulate Westpac on its decision to rule out financing low energy thermal coal projects in ‘new’ basins such as Queensland’s Galilee Basin.  Importantly, this includes Adani's proposed Carmichael coal mine.

I also welcome Westpac’s new lending targets for climate change solutions such as clean energy, and for its commitments to improving energy efficiency and pricing carbon.

Westpac’s release of its updated Climate Change Action Plan shows it is better aligning its own policies and practices to its commitment to “holding global warming below 2°C relative to pre-industrial levels”.

The science makes it clear that fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil need to stay in the ground if the world is to avoid irreversible and catastrophic damage to our climate. The world needs to stop mining and burning fossil fuels, and move to renewable sources of energy as a matter of urgency.

I encourage Westpac to continue further down the track of being a responsible corporate citizen, and move away rapidly from financing coal, oil and gas and oil mining altogether.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely