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EU Finance Ministers pass on the climate buck

Activist caimpaigning for a fair deal at COP 15 in Copenhagen. Photo: DanChurchAid

Absolutely no results when it comes to climate. So was the “result” when the EU Finance ministers ended their meeting on October 20th 2009.

This means that the Finance Ministers are passing on the buck to the European Heads of State and Government step up with new money when they meet in Brussels at the end of the month, on 29 and 30 October.

DanChurchAid together with aid agencies from all over Europe is warning that if climate finance is not additional to the 0.7 per cent of GDP promised in aid the fight against poverty would go into reverse.

EU responsibility

Right now the EU does not recognize that poor countries are in grave need of support if they are to tackle the consequences of climate change. It seems that the EU leaders are not willing to assume their responsibility after a couple of hundred years of pollution.

“Climate finance is a make or break issue in international climate talks”, says Mattias Söderberg, head of the Ecumenical Climate Secretariat in Copenhagen. “However, with just days to go until a climate deal is due to be agreed in Copenhagen, the worlds wealthiest and most polluting nations have yet to make a serious offer”.
The European Commission earlier gave a very low estimate that poor countries would receive between Euro 22 billion and 50 billion in public climate finance. The Commission has previously said that Europe would be responsible for providing between Euro 2 billion and 15 billion of the global figure. Just Euro 2 billion is equivalent to the annual ODA of a small country like Denmark.

Polluter Pays

The EU’s climate finance commitments could be met without costing the European taxpayer another Euro. The European Commission estimates that €50bn per year will be raised from polluting industries by the auctioning of emission allowances under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. This money can be used in an international system to be agreed in Copenhagen that will give real assurances that promises on climate financing will not be broken.
By Stine Leth Nissen, DanChurchAid