A Resolve Political Monitor survey,conducted for theHerald in February,found 36 per cent supported the use of nuclear power,23 per cent opposed it and 27 per cent were open to the government investigating its use. The survey found 15 per cent were undecided.

But the ructions within the Coalition over Dutton’s energy policy show that when detailed proposals are canvassed,such as specific reactor sites,nuclear politics becomes more poisonous.

Dutton is yet to outline how the economics of nuclear power stacks up for Australia. Many industry experts believe the nuclear option would be unnecessarily expensive compared to the cost of harnessing the nation’s vast renewable energy resources of wind and sun. It would also take several decades to develop any meaningful nuclear power generation capacity.

The latest Coalition rift shows Dutton’s nuclear plans face a more fundamental hurdle:toxic local politics.

National Party MPs are well known for their scepticism of renewable energy. So if Dutton can’t convince them about the merits of his nuclear plans,how will he win over most voters?

These internal divisions over Dutton’s nuclear power policy raise broader questions about his political judgment.

Rather than being a well-planned,economically viable energy plan,Dutton’s nuclear power policy seems driven by an ideological opposition to renewables.

There is a broader risk. Two decades of political combat over climate policy has rattled investor confidence and slowed Australia’s transition to a low-carbon economy. The Coalition’s nuclear push threatens further confusion;investors must now contemplate the possibility of yet another major energy policy change under a prime minister Dutton.

The internal rift over nuclear policy should give Dutton pause for thought. It seems even National Party MPs don’t want nuclear power plants in their backyard and many more Australians are likely to have the same reaction.

Unless Dutton can quickly win broad voter support for his nuclear power generation plans,he should ditch them. The climate wars have already done enough damage.

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