Australia’s Victoria state has appointed a panel of experts to review its climate change act, it announced Thursday, a move that might lead to more ambitious targets and policies being implemented early next year.

The state’s Labor government is understood to want to set a GHG target after the previous Liberal party government in 2012 abandoned Victoria’s goal to cut emissions to 20% below 2000 levels by 2020.

“We want to transition our economy to reduce emissions, in ways that grow the economy and increase jobs and the review of the Act will help us identify those opportunities,” Environment, Climate Change and Water Minister Lisa Neville said in a statement.

The committee will be headed by Martijn Wilder, a climate change expert with lawfirm Baker & McKenzie. The other two members will be Anna Skarbek of think-tank ClimateWorks and University of Sydney law professor Rosemary Lyster.

The panel’s terms of reference have not been published yet, but the experts are expected to make recommendations by the end of the year on a potential state carbon target and related policy options.

The Age newspaper reported in March that Victoria was considering setting up a state emissions trading scheme, possibly together with New South Wales and South Australia.

Victoria emitted 129 million tonnes of CO2e in 2011-12, making it Australia’s third-biggest emitter.

By Stian Reklev – stian@carbon-pulse.com