28 January 2009 - The European Commission today presented its proposals for the position of the European Union in the international climate negotiations in Copenhagen later this year (1).

UK Green MEP Dr Caroline Lucas, who sits on the European Parliament’s Environment and Climate Change Committees, commented:

"The EU has a lot of work to do to substantiate its claim to be a global leader on climate change. A credible EU negotiating position at the UN climate talks will imply making ambitious commitments on greenhouse gas emissions reductions, as well as on financing climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing countries.

"The emissions reduction commitments must be both consistent with the scientific advice of the UN IPCC, and reflect the historic responsibility of the EU for tackling climate change. This means the EU must commit to finding an international agreement on industrialised country emission reductions at the top of the IPCC scale: i.e. a collective and domestic 40-45% reduction by 2020, based on 1990 levels.

"In addition, EU and other industrialised countries need to agree to finance at least half of the reduction effort that needs to be achieved in developing countries. In this regard, we regret that Commission communication fails to set out an ambitious vision and merely rehashes existing targets.

"It is also unfortunate that the Commission chose to dodge the bullet on the financing of climate change mitigation and adaptation in developing countries. The communication failed to recognise the level of financing that will be required by industrialised countries in the context of an international climate agreement.

"A realistic and credible international agreement would include industrialised countries providing at least €100bn by 2020 and, based on its responsibility, the EU must be willing to provide up to a quarter of this, with the funding to come outside of traditional development aid budgets."

Dr Lucas concluded: "EU leaders must now step up their ambition and fill in these blanks when they finally decide on the EU’s negotiating position at the spring summit in March."

ENDS

Notes to Editors

(1) The Commission communication will provide the foundation for the EU’s position in the UNFCCC talks in Copenhagen (COP15 - http://en.cop15.dk/). These talks will aim to reach a post-2012 international climate agreement - a successor to the Kyoto Protocol.