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Minister Gormley Welcomes Climate Change Agreement

Speech to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali 12/12/07 (doc, 22 kb)

Minister Gormley Warns Developed Countries that Prevarication is Tantamount to a Gross Dereliction of Duty (doc, 83 kb) 12/12/2007


Minister Gormleys Blog - Saturday 15th

Minister Gormley's Blog - Thursday 13th

Minister Gormley's Blog - Wednesday 12th

Minister Gormley's Blog - Tuesday 11th

Minister Gormley's Blog Monday 10th

United Nations Climate Change Conference - Bali, 3 - 14 December 2007  Background Information
Minister for the Environment, Heritage & Local Government John Gormley TD departed on Saturday 8 December for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bali. On his departure he said, “Climate change threatens our very existence.  We will get one chance to tackle Climate Change and the Bali conference presents that opportunity.  I am confident that the rest of the world are committed to dealing with this monumental threat and I am confident that we can agree a roadmap for a successor to the Kyoto Protocol.”

The Conference, hosted by the Government of Indonesia, is taking place at the Bali International Convention Centre and brings together representatives of over 180 countries together with observers from intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations, and the media. The two-week period includes the sessions of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC, its subsidiary bodies as well as the Meeting of the Parties of the Kyoto Protocol. A ministerial segment in the second week will conclude the Conference.

What Bali can deliver
What is needed is a breakthrough in the form of a roadmap for a new international agreement on enhanced global action to fight climate change in the period after 2012, the year the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol expires. The Bali conference will not deliver a fully negotiated and agreed climate deal, but is aimed at setting the necessary wheels in motion. In order to avoid a gap after the end of the Protocol’s first phase in 2012, the negotiations will need to conclude in 2009 to allow enough time for ratification.

The main issue
Not only the timeline, but the agenda must be agreed at Bali. Among the areas the new deal is expected to cover are mitigation (including avoided deforestation), adaptation, technology and financing. What is clear is that  industrialized countries must continue to take the lead in emission reductions, in accordance with the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Some of the most vulnerable countries of the world have contributed the least to climate change, but are bearing the brunt of it. Developing countries, in particular, need to adapt to the effects of climate change. Adaptation and mitigation efforts must therefore go hand in hand. Funding made available for adaptation needs to be supplementary to resources already committed to helping developing countries move out of poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
A new climate deal will provide the opportunity to speed up the transfer of clean technologies and adaptation technologies, thereby opening up new business opportunities. The burgeoning carbon market is already paving the way for a cost-effective transition to a low-emission economy in developed countries, while mobilizing resources needed to provide incentives to developing countries. 

The benchmark for success
A new international climate deal that addresses the interests of both developed and developing countries is hoped for. The world is now watching and waiting for results. If a decision to launch negotiations is taken, if an agenda for negotiations is agreed, and if an end-date for completing negotiations is set, then Bali will have been a success. Anything short of that will constitute a failure.

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