Reaching an International Agreement on Climate Change

HC 355, Sixth Report of Session 2007-08 - Report, Together with Formal Minutes, Oral and Written Evidence

Author:

House of Commons - Environmental Audit Committee

Publisher:

TSO (The Stationery Office)

The agreement of the Bali roadmap charted a course for negotiations on a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol, which will expire in 2012. Uncertainties remain, however, about the pace and eventual outcome of the negotiations. A post-2012 agreement will only be a success if it is guided by the science, which warns that developed countries must reduce emissions by 25-40% by 2020 and 80-95% by 2050.

These figures only translate to a 50-50 chance of avoiding dangerous climate change and the international community should aspire to even greater reductions. Most developing countries are not required to reduce emissions but will need to commit to certain actions that will limit the growth of, and eventually stabilise, their emissions.

The Committee believes that the targets for, and commitment to actions by, developing countries are the minimum that the UK and European Union (EU) should accept in the negotiations. Diplomacy will be key in helping to reach agreement on the effort required and the Government will have to work closely with developing countries to explore the actions that they might be willing to commit to.

The post-2012 agreement can be more flexible and creative than its predecessor in responding to the different needs of different countries. It is clear that substantial developed country financing will be required in order to shift developing countries onto a low-carbon path and also to encourage them to agree to mitigation actions.

Extent	179 pages	ISBN	9780215521569
Size	A4	Price	£20.00
Binding	Paperback	Published	08 Jul 2008
Availability	Colour copy: 3 - 5 days	Delivery	Delivery options and charges

Mail to a Colleague