Madam President,
The Swedish Government considers climate change to be one of the major environmental and political challenges of this century. This is reflected both in Swedish national policies and in Sweden’s efforts to contribute to an international future climate regime post 2012.
One point of departure of the Swedish climate strategy is that Sweden wants to set an example by showing that it is indeed possible to decrease emission of greenhouse gases without compromising economic growth.
Greenhouse gas emissions in Sweden were 7 % lower in 2005 than in 1990. During the same period the Swedish economy grew by 36 %.
The success of Swedish climate policy is largely a result of various policies and measures, in particular a carbon dioxide tax which Sweden, as the first country in the world, introduced already in 1991.
In the heating sector the use of fossil fuels has decreased dramatically and instead the incineration of biomass and energy efficiency has increased. Swedish electricity production is nearly free from carbon dioxide as it is largely based on hydro and nuclear power. A system of green electricity certificates aims to promote electricity production based on renewable sources such as bio fuels, wind power and small scale hydro power.
Since 1970 the use of oil in Sweden has decreased by nearly 50 % whereas the supply of bio energy has increased by 60 %. As a result, Sweden's energy supply mix is now more differentiated and our security of supply is much more robust.
further challenges, however, remain, in particular in the transport sector. Let me give some examples of measures introduced: Ethanol and other bio fuels used as propellants are exempt from tax. In order to stimulate the use of environmentally friendly and fuel-efficient cars the Swedish government has introduced a rebate when purchasing a “green” car. An other example is the reintroduction of a congestion tax in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, actually starting today, August 1st. The public sector is to take the lead and set a good example in order to accelerate development amongst the public and for business and industry. Thus there are requirements for a share of 85 % of “green” cars in public procurement and leasing of cars. In addition, there is a requirement that at least 25 % of emergency vehicles must be “green”.
The Swedish government has taken a number of initiatives in order to increase involvement of the entire society in the endeavour of combating climate change, in particular to have broader and deeper cooperation with business and industry, the research community as well as the political sphere. These initiatives include the setting up of a Commission on Sustainable Development, a Scientific Council on Climate issues and a Climate Committee to review climate policies. One result of these initiatives will be a new climate policy bill to be presented to the Swedish Parliament in 2008.
Madam president,
Sweden has taken important steps to tackle global warming and is prepared to do more. However, with a population of only some 9 million, Sweden’s contribution to annual global emissions of greenhouse gases is rather small. Therefore international co-operation is of decisive importance in order to effectively combat climate change.
In Europe, the recent decisions taken by the leaders of the EU-member states will be driving developments in this field.Sweden had the privilege of hosting an informal meeting in June this year where ministers of Environment and high level officials from some 27 countries met to discuss climate change and a new climate regime. At that meeting we found there to be, and I quote from the Chairman’s summary, - a solid foundation for international action, and even urgency of action,- there was broad consensus that the UNFCCC meeting in Bali should establish a Road Map with a timetable and concrete steps for the negotiations on the future regime with a view to reaching agreement by 2009.A future regime should be guided by a shared vision:• Serious consideration should be given to yardsticks and goals for this effort, including the goal of at least halving global emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. • It is time to intensify concrete action under the Convention. • High priority has to be given to adaptation. The industrialised countries have a clear responsibility to assist developing countries in dealing with the impacts of climate change.• Industrialised countries must continue to take the lead and reduce their emissions substantially, given their historic responsibility, economic strength and capabilities.• However, the problem cannot be solved by the industrialised countries alone. It should be recognised that developing countries are already making important contributions and that their further engagement will be part of the overall effort in limiting and reducing emissions.
the challenge for the international system is to achieve substantial emission reductions and adaptation while at the same time allowing for sustainable development and poverty eradication. Therefore the world needs an effective, fair and comprehensive multilateral regime based on concerted international efforts.
Thank You