UK Claims Climate "Leadership" As Emissions Allowances Rise 7%

[hatrack]

"Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett has today defended the Prime Minister's record on global warming, saying Britain is leading the campaign to cut greenhouse emissions. Her comments come as the Government moves to allow power stations, factories and the steel and iron industries, to discharge seven per cent more CO2 than originally planned.

The announcement has led to accusations of the Government bowing to pressure from big business and putting enterprise above the environment.

Ms Beckett rigorously defended the remodeling of the emissions requirement, saying the Government believes that sustaining the economy and tackling dangerous emissions can go hand in hand. The Environment Secretary did admit that there was a "particular problem" with the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. "That's where we set ourselves a more stringent domestic target and where we have to do more", she said.

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The left-wing think-tank, the Institute for Public Policy Research, is poised to publish a report criticising the Government's performance on tackling climate change. Tony Grayling of the IPPR said: "We are publishing a report which shows that the UK is off target in relation to its climate change commitments at a domestic level." "Unfortunately progress has stalled, emissions from the United Kingdom are no longer on a downward path", he said. Mr Grayling added: "We have just had a bad precedent set where the Government has given into business pressure over the new European scheme for trading and pollution permits of Carbon dioxide." He warned that changing the permitted limits of carbon dioxide sends the "wrong long term signal" to business and industry."

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http://www.politics.co.uk/domestic-policy/britain-cutting-greenhouse-gas-emissions-says-beckett-$6093138.htm