The Informal Meeting of Energy Ministers here in Åre will soon be starting. What’s occupying your mind at the moment?
"Right up to the last minute, it is in fact about clarifying the conditions for the meeting. There is no way of knowing until just beforehand what it is going to be like. But I hope there will be some good and exciting dialogue. These informal meetings are intended for freer discussions with a lot of new ideas. We ministers need to meet like this.”
You have attended thousands of meetings - what is special about this one?
“This meeting is the first one I am chairing during the Presidency, so it feels particularly exciting. Plus it is great that the meeting is about two issues that I am personally committed to and have put a lot of time into in my job as a minister. Firstly energy efficiency, which has finally become an important political issue. The second issue is an eco-efficient economy – combining economic growth with efficient energy use. How are we to go from wasting energy to economising resources, and at the same time create new jobs. And how is Europe to take the lead in this process.
I am pleased that we have succeeded in inviting people who represent a good mix of skills and views, both institutions such as the European Environment Agency and countries such as South Africa. The meeting also forms part of the preparations for the major climate change conference in Copenhagen in December. The energy and enterprise ministers must also participate in those discussions, not just the environment ministers.”
How can we show the connection between this meeting and these issues and people’s day-to-day lives?
“When you buy household electrical goods, you should receive information about how much energy they consume. When you buy a house, you should receive information about how much energy it consumes, so you can budget for the cost. Or choose more energy-efficient alternatives. These are two practical examples of how the issue of energy efficiency can affect Europeans in their day-to-day lives.”