Activites

• 2002/03/21 Final act published in Official Journal
• 2001/09/06 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T5-0451/2001 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the resolution on the outcome of the Bonn Conference on climate change. This resolution calls on the Commission to issue 'concrete Directive proposals' for an EU emissions trading regime by the end of the year. The resolution, adopted by a crushing majority(398 votes to 9, with 3 abstentions) also calls for a Commission proposal to ratify the Kyoto Protocol before the next UN climate change conference begins in Marrakech in October and for specific measures to reduce greenhouse gases in the EU. Parliament is delighted with the lead taken by the EU in negotiating a successful outcome to the Bonn Conference which, it says, has given a 'new impetus' to the Kyoto Protocol as well as being a major step towards 'global and multilateral' decision-making' on environmental issues, sending out a 'very positive message for all citizens concerned about globalisation'. It urges the EU to maintain this lead and is cautiously optimistic that the US could be brought back on board, given the concerns voiced by American businesses that they could lose out in the development of clean technologies and energy efficiency if the US does not sign up to the Kyoto Protocol. It suggests that the COP-9 conference in 2003 should be held in the US, with international carbon trading - which is due to start in 2008 - high on the agenda. The Parliament does have criticisms of the Bonn agreement's 'shoortcomings', particularly as regards penalties for non-compliance, but it hopes that the 'enforcement branch' the parties agreed will later provide the basis of a tough legal instrument backed by sanctions. The Parliament also has reservations about the inclusion of carbon sinks and it wants the use of flexible instruments, such as emissions trading, to be limited. MEPs say funds from the sale of 'hot air' to the EU must be used for environmental projects in Russia and Ukraine.�

Documents

• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0451/2001

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)