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JOSE SOCRATES, Prime Minister of Portugal and current EU President

Climate Action - Assisting business towards carbon neutrality

Brown faces climate change revolt

Published on 09 July 2008

Source: BBC News Politics website 

Gordon Brown is facing the prospect of another significant backbench rebellion - this time over climate change.

More than 80 Labour MPs have signed an amendment to the Climate Change Bill, which would force ministers to promise greater cuts in carbon emissions.

The bill commits Britain to make at least a 60% cut in CO2 emissions by 2050. The MPs want that to rise to 80%.

Meanwhile Mr Brown hailed "major progress" at the G8 summit, as leaders agreed to halve CO2 emissions by 2050.

Last year's G8 would only "seriously consider" a 50% cut in C02 but on Tuesday it said it would "consider and adopt" the goal in an international agreement.

Electric cars

Mr Brown said the deal was "beyond what people thought possible". The G8 has agreed a list of 25 areas where wealthier countries can help by cutting energy use, including abandoning traditional light bulbs and reducing power needed by appliances on standby.

The prime minister said he hoped part of that change could see households across the UK switching to electric or less-polluting cars.

    
This is one of the biggest issues facing domestic politics and clearly goes beyond party politics
Steve Webb
Liberal Democrat MP

G8 aims to halve greenhouse gases

Greenpeace said tough targets were needed for the richest countries to slash emissions in the next 100 months.

Mr Brown may face a backbench revolt over Britain's own plans to reduce carbon emissions.

The Labour rebels say the Climate Change Bill's 60% goal will not do enough to control global warming and say the target is based on out-of-date science.

Refusal to change

The government has indicated it is not unsympathetic to the 80% target and the prime minister has already said the evidence points that way.

However, he has handed the issue to an independent Climate Change Committee, headed by former CBI chief Lord Turner, and he is refusing to change the bill until the committee has agreed a new target.

Read full article on the BBC News Politics website 

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