18 December 2007 - Two key announcements on EU climate policy this week look set to expose the EU institutions as hypocritical and ineffective on climate change legislation, warned Caroline Lucas, Green MEP for the South East, today.

The European Commission is due to present legislation tomorrow (19 December) on binding carbon dioxide emission limits for new passenger cars, and the Council will announce a ‘common position’ on much-heralded plans to include aviation in the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) on Thursday. Both run the risk of severely compromising the EU’s strong rhetoric on climate change after concessions were made to the car and aviation industries, the MEP commented.

"Just days after taking credit for leadership on climate issues at the Bali talks", Dr Lucas said, "the EU is due to fail at the first real test of its own commitment. Transport is the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions, yet the two key decisions this week will set out targets on car and plane emissions which fall far short of what’s needed. The EU looks bereft of political leadership on climate change while it holds onto these weak targets."

Passenger car use accounts for about 12 percent of the EU’s overall CO2 emissions. The European Commission will announce an emission standard to be set for new cars from 2012 but early signs suggest car manufacturers will merely be required to reduce emissions to 130g/km of CO2 by 2012 - to be contrasted with the average level of 120g/km which they were supposed to have attained by 2005.

Dr Lucas said: "Not only has it weakened its proposals, the Commission will probably also fail to set a longer term standard altogether for 2020. The proposal is likely to favour heavy cars, differentiating standards for individual car manufacturers on the basis of weight. This would give carmakers a totally perverse incentive to increase the size of their cars, rather than creating smaller and cleaner cars. We already know that carmakers failed to make the emission cuts they had promised under an earlier voluntary agreement, in part for the very reason that cars were increasing in weight."

"Meanwhile, the Council’s flimsy position on aviation looks set to be even worse than the already hugely disappointing proposal from the European Commission. It is set to be unveiled with a start date of 2012 or even 2013 - ignoring the European Parliament’s call for a start date of 2011 – and may even postpone the inclusion of flights from or to countries outside the EU for another year. This is simply inconsistent with the urgency of the need for action and signifies a blatant refusal to act on the advice of climate experts.

"Although aviation will be included in the Emissions Trading Scheme, only 3% of allowances will be auctioned, compared to our calls for 100%, and against all the hard-won lessons from the existing ETS that free allocation simply means billions in windfall profits for participating companies, rather than any incentive for them to reduce emissions.

Furthermore, there will be no ear-marking of revenues from auctioning for climate-related purposes - a lost opportunity to raise the billions needed for adaptation, technology transfer and initiatives to avoid deforestation.

"Perhaps most worryingly, the absence of any measures to address aviation’s non-CO2 emissions means the use of ETS permits by aviation could result in even more damage to the climate than they are "worth". And there are no limits to the number of permits aviation can buy from other sectors, which is key to the workability of the scheme.

"The Council proposal basically provides an open door to windfall profits for the industry and falls hugely short of what is needed to achieve environmental objectives. It may even have a negative impact on the environment, if the inclusion of allowance-greedy airlines displaces emissions from other industries outside Europe to countries where they are even less regulated.

Dr Lucas said: "Political cowardice in the face of big industry lobbying is preventing the Council and the Commission from setting high emissions targets which seriously address the need to reduce greenhouse gases. Unless the EU gets its own climate policy in order, particularly on the vitally important issue of transport, its fine words in Bali last week will look like so much hypocrisy."

"The substantial weakening of the Commission and Council proposals sends a highly damaging signal to the rest of the world about the EU’s commitment to serious and effective action in its own backyard."

ENDS