MEPs meeting for a plenary session in Strasbourg last week, adopted a resolution calling for the EU to show the required leadership, necessary to make the Copenhagen summit a success. In order to achieve this goal, the European Parliamentarians are urging EU leaders to commit to contributing around €30 billion in climate aid to developing countries, and more generally to clarify the EU position on certain key areas.

The resolution received strong support (516 in favour; 92 against; 70 abstentions) in voting, and represents the position the European Parliament believes the EU should take in Denmark next month. For example the resolution also stated that developing countries should commit to binding emission reduction targets at the high-end of the 25-40% spectrum, with a longer term target of 80% less emissions by 2050. This reflects more recent scientific evidence, which suggests that climate change is happening more quickly than previously thought, and therefore needs a quicker and stronger corresponding response.

Meanwhile the text also outlines the sort of commitments it believes developing countries should make, saying they should limit their emission growth to 15-30% below business-as-usual scenarios. In order that such countries adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change, the Parliament has put forward short and longer term climate financing proposals. In the short term, the Parliament is calling on €5-7 billion to be freed up for the period 2010-2012 as ‘fast-track funding’, with the body suggesting the EU would have to set aside a further €30 billion per year to ensure the necessary progress.