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Climate change – a UK Government Initiative |
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In March 2007, amid much publicity, the British Government published a
draft Climate Change Bill accompanied by a consultation paper for
discussion purposes.
By David Glass, Pritchard Englefield, London based law firm
The draft Bill focuses mainly on reducing carbon dioxide emissions and has four principal elements:-
1. Setting binding UK targets for carbon dioxide emissions reduction -
by 2050, the target is to reduce such emissions by 60% against a 1990
baseline. The aim is to have achieved a reduction of 26 - 32% by 2020
against the same 1990 baseline.
As an essential element of the programme, carbon “budgeting” would be
introduced in rolling five year periods up to 2050 with three
consecutive such budgets being published at any one time (i.e. to cover
a 15-year period).
2. Establishing an independent Committee on Climate Change – this
Committee of the Great and the Good would advise the UK Government on
how to reduce CO² emissions over time and across the economy in order
to meet the 2050 target.
3. Creating enabling powers – the Government would be given power to
introduce new domestic emissions trading schemes through secondary
legislation to support the primary objective of reducing carbon dioxide
emissions.
4. Reporting requirements – the Committee on Climate Change would be
given specific annual reporting requirements to Parliament so as to
improve public transparency of the entire CO² emissions reduction
process.
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The UK Government claims that its proposed Bill constitutes the first
attempt by any country anywhere in the world to impose binding domestic
CO² emissions reduction targets. However, on looking at the close print
of what is proposed, there are numerous loopholes and let outs – for
instance, greenhouse gases other than CO² emissions are largely not
covered by the Bill nor are CO² emissions from airplanes or ships.
Furthermore, a vital element of the proposals is that the UK would have
the ability to satisfy its self-imposed target at least partly through
international CO² trading credit schemes, thus reducing the actual
reductions which have to take place within the UK jurisdiction.
Nevertheless, the proposed UK legislation does constitute specific
recognition at a national level of what the Kyoto targets and the EU
Emissions Trading Scheme are also trying to achieve. At the very least,
it is recognition at a national level of the importance of developing
climate change policy for the long-term future protection of Planet
Earth.
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