Major international Climate change deal close - Blair

Looks like things are inching closer on the subject some (including myself) believe the single greatest challenge to our future prosperity and peace facing us all right now.

Significantly he is openly talking about a huge shift in the view of even the 'oil-men Presidency' of GW Bush.

Interesting times.

UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has told the World Economic Forum that a major breakthrough on long-term climate change goals could be close.

He told the forum in Davos, Switzerland it was possible because of a "quantum shift" in the attitude of the US.

He said the German G8 presidency offered an opportunity for a new international agreement for when the Kyoto Protocol expired in 2012.

"I believe we are potentially on the verge of a breakthrough," he said.

Mr Blair praised Chancellor Angela Merkel's focus on climate change during her EU presidency and India and China's engagement with the G8.

He also pledged to work with other world leaders towards a more "radical" and "comprehensive" successor to the Kyoto protocol.

"The German G8 Presidency gives us the opportunity to agree at least the principles of a new, binding international agreement to come into effect when the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012," Mr Blair said.

"But one which is more radical than Kyoto and more comprehensive, one which this time includes all the major countries of the world."

news.bbc.co.uk...

Now the US seems to be getting onboard, the big difficulty comes with nations like China and India. These nations in particular are very hesitant to sign up to climate change treaties because they fear it will stunt their economic growth. And maybe it will, but I think the effects of global warming will cost far more than the money lost switching from fossil fuels to cleaner sources of energy.

If the Prime Minister can get these nations on board (which has become more likely now that the US has, although there's still a way to go yet), he really does have a legacy to be remembered.

I think the China and Indian issue here is gong to be easier than people imagine, if not actually 'easy'.

The Indians and Chinese themselves are not blind to the damage their 'dash' for modern industrialisation' is doing to their own environments and people, nevermind on a wider scale.

I expect the carbon trading schemes and sheer self-interest all around will mean we can agree and moderate the worst of the effects.

Basically I expect they will skip several steps in the processes of 'modernisation' that we have gone through and acquire that cleaner and more environmentally friendly technology much faster and more cheaply than would otherwise be the case.

Otherwise we're all in serious trouble......and I think that is dawning on more and more people who previously had refused to accept the idea.