July 2005
G8 Outcomes On Climate Change
The final statement on Climate change, issued at the G8 summit, shows that leaders are still divided and have made no significant progress in the fight against climate change.
Although seven members reaffirmed their commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, which puts fixed targets on reducing greenhouse emissions, they bowed to pressure from the Bush Administration and failed to deliver a strong statement on the urgency of the problem of climate change and the need to cut emissions now.
G8 countries currently represent 45% of global emissions of greenhouse gases, but have just 13% of the world’s population. In their communiqué the G8 stated that "climate change is a serious and long-term challenge that has the potential to affect every part of the globe", the group have pledged that they we will take action to
- Promote innovation, energy efficiency, conservation, policy improvement, regulatory and financing frameworks; and accelerate deployment of cleaner technologies, primarily focusing on lower emitting technologies.
- Work with developing countries to enhance private investment and transfer of technologies, taking into account their own energy needs and priorities.
- Raise awareness of climate change and our other multiple challenges and the means of dealing with them, and make available the information which business and consumers need to make better use of energy and reduce emissions.
In reaction to the G8 communiqué Lord May of Oxford, president of the Royal Society said: "the conspicuous failure of the G8 explicitly to mention even the need for targets to reduce emissions of gases underlines our concern, we have been talking, not acting since 1992".
International Vice Chair of Friends of the Earth, Tony Juniper said "This is a very disappointing finale. The G8 have delivered nothing new here and the text conveys no sense of the scale or urgency of the challenge…to truly help fight against the poverty and against climate change, G8 countries needed to immediately introduce public finance for sustainable and accessible clean energy. Instead they continue to support the extraction of coal, oil and gas through bodies like the World Bank."
The Prime Minister’s decision to make climate change a priority for the UK’s G8 presidency, however, has put climate change on the agenda of heads of government. This will be taken forward through the EU presidency, through dialogue between the G8 and the major emerging economies of Brazil, China, Mexico, India and South Africa.
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