The Federal Government has announced that it will merge the majority of the functions of the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE) with the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education (DIISTRE).

Minister for Climate Change, Greg Combet, said the decision to merge the two departments came after the DCCEE had hit most of its goals, with the establishment of the Climate Commission and introduction of the carbon pricing scheme.

“Climate change is an environmental problem which requires an economic solution. That is why we are merging the responsibility for climate change policy into the Department responsible for driving innovation and industry policy in our economy,” Mr Combet said in a statement.

Mr Combet also announced that the key energy efficiency policies of the DCCEE will be merged into the Department of resources, Energy and Tourism.

The Clean Energy Regulator will remain an independent agency with responsibility for administering the carbon price, the Renewable Energy Target and other key policy measures.