Do not be fooled by the anodyne name, the government’s safeguard mechanism, outlined in draft form by Chris Bowen on Tuesday, is the tent pole that holds up its entire climate policy.

And tethered to it is the government’s effort to rebrand Australia as an activist global player on climate, which in turn is central to its foreign policy.

Its domestic credibility is at stake too. Crucial to Labor’s victory was the fragile truce it managed to secure in the climate wars, winning (guarded) support for its climate policies from business and industry groups as well as key environment advocates.

Economists broadly agree that the simplest way to drive down emissions is via a carbon tax because, as the IMF notes, they can easily be piggybacked on existing fuel taxes, and flow through to energy prices, prompting reductions in fossil fuel use.

This explains why the Gillard government was drawn to introduce a carbon tax despite its earlier promises not to do so.

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As Gillard learned, taxes are unpopular and easy to attack. Years of combat over climate has made such a policy untenable in this country.

This is why Albanese’s government has chosen instead to update a policy first advanced by the Coalition in 2016.

Under the mechanism, the 215 largest carbon-polluting facilities in the country - those that emitted more than 100,000 tonnes per year - would be identified and required to meet an emissions baseline.