Officials from the Commission's environment directorate also welcomed the statement. The directorate is expected to use the statement to put pressure on its sister competition directorate to work on proposals to restrict aid. Spain and Germany, both of which provide large subsidies to their coal industries, would be most likely to resist such an initiative. A detailed programme will be drawn up after the Kyoto protocol is finalised later this year, and the Environment Council has recommended what it should concentrate on. Fiscal measures favouring energy saving products and services are also emphasised.
Environmentalists remain unimpressed.
In a vote this week the European Parliament's environment committee also urged the Commission to come up with a more concrete programme of measures.