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This post was originally published in 2008. It does not necessarily represent my complete views on this matter.
Tomorrow, probably to little fanfare, the EP will do something that it should be really good at. It will legislate on climate change. I say it should be really good at it, because environmental issues, which rarely respect national borders, are one of the things that the EU could almost have been designed to tackle.
Unfortunately though, short sighted politics have taken over again. Apparently, things will be better if we downgrade climate change as a priority problem, in line with the economic meltdown currently taking place. [rant] Do these stupid, heavy-industry loving MEPs not have any brains? What on earth do they think will happen to their economy when the unmitigated impacts of climate change really kick in?! [/rant] As good environmentalists, I’m sure we’ve all read the Stern Report cover to cover, and so know that action now will hurt a bit now, but nothing like inaction now will hurt later.
There is, at least, some minor hope. Stavros Dimas (Env. Commissioner) said that the financial crisis “is here one day and it is gone another day,” the “climate crisis will be there always and we must face it”.