Parliament calls for EU climate change 'diplomacy'

MEP Karl-Heinz Florenz  (EPP-ED, Germany), draftsperson of the final report, said cooperation with the transport and economics committees as well as the energy sector contributed to a balanced report, which is not a "party-political manifesto".

MEP Guido Sacconi (PSE, Italy) urged the next Parliament, which assumes office after the June elections, to equip itself with a similar cross-sector instrument, and not to return to "putting everything in watertight, separate compartments".

Romana Jordan Cizelj (EPP-ED, Slovenia) agreed the xommittee had to be innovative. According to her, the best areas to take action are in energy policy, transport and industry, but there are many new areas, such as the sustainable use of forests, ICT and development policies towards third countries. "In the end, we will also have to change our lifestyles and make taking care of the environment a core value. Informing and educating European citizens is of crucial importance here," she said.

MEP Rebecca Harms (Greens, Germany), however, questioned the unity that lies behind the report. She said the weak role Europe played in UN climate talks in Poznan showed EU states were concerned about watering down earlier announcements. "The decision whether we will move towards a sustainable lifestyle has not been made yet," she argued.

Furthermore, MEP Caroline Lucas (Greens, UK) warned the EU was still doing too little, too late. According to her, Europe should not compare its achievements against what others are doing but against what needs to be done. "Against this measure, we're still failing," she concluded.

MEP Chris Davies (ALDE, UK) regretted that both the Parliament report and the Commission communication failed to put the issue of reducing population growth on the agenda. "Our refusal to talk about it is the greatest folly," he said, calling for better medical resources to make contraception available to all women.

MEP Jens Holm (GEU/NGL, Sweden) criticised the MEPs' rejection of a demand for a reduction in meat consumption, despite the report's statement that livestock production is responsible for 18% of emissions worldwide.

Czech Environment Minister Martin Bursík,  whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said the report would further deepen the EU's climate policies and serve as a basis, along with the Commission's Copenhagen Communication, for the bloc's position in the UN climate negotiations. 

He gave assurances that the EU would continue to "engage in active outreach", in response to the Parliament's call on the Commission and the member states to "adopt a mediating role at bilateral level in the negotiations towards a post-2012 agreement". In particular, he said the EU would work as close as possible with the US on linking carbon markets to provide financing for effective long-term climate policies.

Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said he was pleased to see the committee had continued in line with the Commission's thinking as outlined in the communication on a new global climate deal. He stressed that more investment in resources, especially in developing countries, was needed to make Copenhagen a success, stating that in the Commission's view, a third of the money should come from emissions trading.