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The Prosser Perspective.... a weekly column from Dover and Deal MP Gwyn Prosser

21 February 2008

I believe that the enlarged European Union of 27 countries needs to have a more effective and streamlined way of making decisions and that’s why I’m supporting the European Union (Amendment) Bill which obtained its Second Reading last month. By the time the Bill completes its passage it will have received some twenty days of detailed debate and Parliamentary scrutiny stretching over six weeks or more – and quite frankly it’s all starting to get quite tiresome.

That’s not to say I’m not supportive of the principles of the European Union and in favour of the Amending Treaty but regrettably any debate associated with the EU brings out the worst in politicians – and I’m not referring exclusively to the that gang of Tory Anti-European Backwoodsmen who start howling in unison every time the ‘E’ word is mentioned, because we’ve got a small share of Euro Sceptics on our side of the House as well.

Whatever people’s view may be of the EU and the Treaty I would hope that most of us would accept that crucial issues like Climate Change can only be properly dealt with on an international basis and that the European Union is an appropriate platform to make progress .

Climate change threatens the security, prosperity and well being of every one of Europe ’s citizens and opinion polls indicate that this is a matter of deep concern to all of us. We can be proud that our Government has led on climate change at home and abroad. We were pivotal in securing the Kyoto Protocol, and we launched with our European neighbours the world’s first international emissions trading scheme.

The EU Emission Trading Scheme is the biggest environment policy in the world and, as Sir Nicholas Stern put it – “this is the heart of a future global carbon trading scheme and if you are pro environment, you have to be pro Europe ”

The future of the planet should be above Party politics and that’s why it was so disappointing that the Tories opposed our Climate Change Levy, which along with Climate Change Agreements, has already saved 100 million tonnes of carbon emissions and will be saving 22 million tonnes per year by 2010. The Treaty demonstrates Europe ’s ambition to lead the way globally towards secure, low carbon, competitive economies and it recognises the strategic importance of climate change. However, the Treaty preserves the rights of a Member State to determine the conditions for exploiting its own energy resources, its choice of energy mix and the general structure of its energy supply. This will result in greater use of Qualified Majority Voting in energy policy, making it easier to pass measures to ensure security of supply and liberalise energy markets.

Through this agreement, the EU is setting itself on the path to becoming the world’s first high growth, low carbon economy, and to continue to lead global efforts for effective measures to tackle climate change and ensure energy security well into the future .