But he pointed out that without further action they would soon start to rise again, reflecting growth in the economy. The new policies and measures in the draft programme will keep emissions on a downward path, cutting them more than 21 per cent below 1990 levels by 2010 a cut of nearly 10 per cent more than our Kyoto target. Calling for a thorough re-think of the way we live and work and pointing to the benefits, both environmental and economic, of getting ahead of the game, the Deputy Prime Minister said that the programme maps out a radical look to the future and lays out a strategic approach for the next two decades. For the meantime they should only be used where there are no safe, cost effective, practical and environmentally acceptable alternatives. The UK action set out in the programme is part of the world's fight against climate change.
Scientific research predicts world-wide risks.
Rising seas will threaten coastal communities and environments, temperature changes will increase desert areas, threaten the rainforest and increase exposure to pests and diseases. Climate change results from our actions in the past and we must lead the way in dealing with the consequences. This is a crucial year in international negotiations and we must maintain the momentum in the run up to the Sixth Conference of the Parties, in the Hague in November. That is why I am today calling on our European partners to ratify the Kyoto Protocol as soon as possible after COP6. That would mark a significant step forward towards bringing the Kyoto agreement into force.