megimoo
12-06-2009, 04:36 AM
Copenhagen climate change conference: Borrow to the hilt to stop global warming, says Lord Stern
"It's always been about the money,U.S. Money !"
Governments should increase borrowing to tackle global warming despite the dire state of public balance sheets, according to Lord Stern of Brentford, the former chief economist of the World Bank.
snip
His comments come ahead of the Copenhagen conference on climate change starting tomorrow, where global leaders will put in place plans to keep temperature rises below two degrees celsius by 2050.
The International Energy Agency has estimated that the world will need to spend more than :eek:$10 trillion:eek: on low-carbon energy generation and efficiency measures by 2030.
But more pressure on Britain's balance sheet would be likely to unsettle the markets, which are waiting to see how efforts to tackle the deficit will effect the country's triple-A credit rating.
Britain's budget deficit jumped far more than expected this autumn, as the downturn cut tax receipts and the UK has boosted spending on public projects and bailing out the banks.
The cost of tackling climate change is likely to be a vast expense over the next decade, with estimates from Ofgem, the energy regulator, and Ernst and Young, the accountants, agreeing that it could cost Britain £200bn.
The Government hopes that much of this will come from the private sector, eventually passed on to consumers through more expensive energy bills, airline tickets and manufactured goods. But so far, market mechanisms such as carbon trading have failed to deliver enough incentives for utilities and heavy industry to lower emissions.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/copenhagen-climate-change-confe/6738008/Borrow-to-the-hilt-to-stop-global-warming-says-Lord-Stern.html
"It's always been about the money,U.S. Money !"
Governments should increase borrowing to tackle global warming despite the dire state of public balance sheets, according to Lord Stern of Brentford, the former chief economist of the World Bank.
snip
His comments come ahead of the Copenhagen conference on climate change starting tomorrow, where global leaders will put in place plans to keep temperature rises below two degrees celsius by 2050.
The International Energy Agency has estimated that the world will need to spend more than :eek:$10 trillion:eek: on low-carbon energy generation and efficiency measures by 2030.
But more pressure on Britain's balance sheet would be likely to unsettle the markets, which are waiting to see how efforts to tackle the deficit will effect the country's triple-A credit rating.
Britain's budget deficit jumped far more than expected this autumn, as the downturn cut tax receipts and the UK has boosted spending on public projects and bailing out the banks.
The cost of tackling climate change is likely to be a vast expense over the next decade, with estimates from Ofgem, the energy regulator, and Ernst and Young, the accountants, agreeing that it could cost Britain £200bn.
The Government hopes that much of this will come from the private sector, eventually passed on to consumers through more expensive energy bills, airline tickets and manufactured goods. But so far, market mechanisms such as carbon trading have failed to deliver enough incentives for utilities and heavy industry to lower emissions.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/copenhagen-climate-change-confe/6738008/Borrow-to-the-hilt-to-stop-global-warming-says-Lord-Stern.html