Downing Street Says » Copenhagen

Asked if the Prime Minister was going to Copenhagen earlier than planned to act as an envoy between developed and developing countries, the Prime Minister’s Spokesman (PMS) said that would not characterise it in that way; one of the lessons drawn from the G20 was that leadership was needed to pull together large conferences of this nature. The Prime Minister played a role in that leadership at the G20 and he believed the same was needed for Copenhagen.

Asked if the Prime Minister was going earlier than originally planned because he didn’t think enough progress had been made, the PMS said that that wasn’t the case; the Prime Minister remained of the view that an ambitious goal could be achieved at Copenhagen and felt that it was right that he should personally attend.

Put that the Prime Minister was trying to raise his profile ahead of the general election, the PMS said that that was not the case; the Prime Minister had been consistently vocal about climate change and Copenhagen since the summer, and had taken a leadership role at European Council meetings on the issue.

Put that the Prime Minister was trying to avoid Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) by going to Copenhagen early, the PMS said that the Prime Minister was always happy to go to the House of Commons for PMQs and to make any necessary statements.

Asked about the UK’s financial commitment to climate change, the PMS said that the money would come from the ODA budget; no departments were being asked to provide money.

Asked if the 1.5 billion that Britain would contribute to tackle climate change had been factored in already, the PMS said that between 2010 and 2013, as part of the short-term Copenhagen launch fund the money would come from ODA. Between 2013 and 2020, the medium-term, we have said that we would spend over and above the ODA commitment on climate change

Asked if the Prime Minister had a view about Alex Salmond’s attendance at Copenhagen, the PMS said that the Prime Minister was happy to see the First Minister at events like this where important business needed to be done.

Asked if the Prime Minister was concerned that people on low incomes were aggrieved that he was spending money on tackling change rather than domestic issues, the PMS said that the Prime Minister hoped that the British people understood the global significance of climate change and that every developed country needed to make a contribution to tackling this issue. The Pre-Budget Report (PBR) set out a balanced packaged that enabled those people with the broadest shoulders i.e. the higher paid, to share the bigger burden in terms of taxation.

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» Monday, December 14, 2009

Copenhagen

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