Great Britain and the Kyoto protocol: why is Britain so keen on the Kyoto protocol?

Résumé du document

The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol related to the international Framework Convention on Climate Change with the objective of reducing the greenhouse gases that cause climate change. It was agreed upon, on 11 December 1997at the 3rd Conference of the Parties to the treaty, when they met in Kyoto, and enforced on 16 February 2005. So far 189 countries have ratified the protocol with three more countries intending to participate. Of these, 36 developed countries (plus the EU as a party in its own right) are required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the levels specified for each of them in the treaty (representing over 61.6% of emissions from Annex I countries). One hundred and thirty-seven (137) developing countries have ratified the protocol, including Brazil, China and India, but have no obligation beyond monitoring and reporting emissions. The United States has not ratified the treaty.

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[...] The historical Stern review, published in the late 2006, stated that climate change could have very serious impacts on economical growth and development, and that even though the costs of stabilizing climate are significant, they remain manageable and, in any case, much less costly than doing nothing. In short, according to the report, climate change could lead, on a long course, to a huge worldwide economic retrocession. This report definitely influenced the current focus on takling the climate change from part of Great Britain. - Finally and above all, Great Britain seems to be keen on Kyoto mostly because this latter introduces new free market mechanisms. [...]

[...] II) Why is Britain so keen on Kyoto and has changed its energetic policy ? - An historical reason: Britain was the very first country to achieve its industrial revolution, hence the first to start emit carbon. - Some strategical reasons : . The increase of oil prices . A will to avoid being dependant, regarding coal and gaz supplies, notably on Russia and since Great Britain is seeing its own natural resources disappearing . Some political reasons: - First of all, the fact that, worldwide, greenhouse gas emissions has been broadly integrated in the medias, green lobbies (such as “Friends of the Earth or Greenpeace), NGOs and political spheres, and that the British government can't but writing this problem down its agenda. [...]

[...] Hence, in addition to be economically very profitable for Great Britain, this carbon trade market is totally in harmony with the traditional attachment of Great Britain to a free market economy. Conclusion Great Britain has been one of the leaders regarding the Kyoto protocol on the International stage and within the European Union. As seen, several reasons have justified this focus on the reduction of gas emission, due to geostrategical, political and above all economical strategies. We can't state that the government of Great Britain is keen on Kyoto only for economical reasons and self interests and that it has ethically speaking no reason to respect it. [...]

[...] - In addition, Blair has broadly campaigned over global warming, particularly within the Group of Eight's meetings, in order to pressure on countries such as U.S and Australia. Tony Blair has paved the way to Gordon Brown's energy policy to tackle climate change. Gordon Brown Since he arrived on power in June 2007, Brown has also shown a will to keep focusing on takling the climate changes, and he has often claimed that he was “greener than the greens”. The commitments of the Kyoto protocol seem to be a priotity for Gordon Brown's government. [...]

[...] However, it can't be denied that, in addition to be a necesity for its national environment and energy supplies and to be useful to the country's International radiance, the Kyoto protocol introduces many measures in harmony with Britain's mentality, notably regarding the market. Bibliography http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/audio/?podcastItem=energy.mp3 (podcast about the renewable energies) http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/publications/downloads/SDC-NuclearPosition- 2006.pdf http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file39387.pdf (The White paper on Energy, May 2007) http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/3/2/Summary_of_Conclusions.pdf (The Stern report, October 2006). (http://www.york.ac.uk/res/celp/webpages/projects/foe/introduction.htm) http://www.berr.gov.uk/about/ministerial-team/page45211.html (Speach of John Hutton, Secretary of the energy). [...]