30 October 2006
Tony Blair warned that the conclusions of the Stern Report into climate change are a "wake-up call" to every country in the world.
Read the article in full
Today the Government will publish the most important report on the future which I have received since becoming Prime Minister.
The Stern Report should be seen across the globe as the final word on why the world must act now to limit the damage we are doing to our planet.
The conclusions are a wake-up call to every country in the world.
The case for action is the final piece of the jigsaw to convince every single political leader, including those in America, China and India, that this must be top of their agenda.
Climate change won’t just affect hot countries or those in the developing world — it will affect us all.
The report is clear: We are heading towards catastrophic tipping points in our climate unless we act.
We need a concerted global effort from governments, scientists and businesses and a massive injection of funding, to create a technology revolution that vastly reduces the energy we use, and improves solar panels and other renewable energy.
Creating cleaner energy whilst using less has to be the key.
Crucially, it is cheaper to act now than wait. In the UK we can be proud of our record.
We are on course to reduce our emissions by double what we promised at Kyoto.
No other European country gets close. We put Africa and climate change at the top of the world agenda when we were G8 President last year.
British people show a real passion to play their part, whether by driving less, not leaving their TV on standby, or just buying greener products.
While more incentives may well have a role to play, this is a problem which will be solved at a global, not domestic level.
It is only because of this progress that we can make the case to other countries.
We’ve started on the right road by setting emissions limits for power stations across Europe and signing a climate change agreement with California recently. But there’s much more for every country to do.
That means we must help developing countries deal with climate change, honouring the pledges we made to Africa last year, helping them adapt and produce clean energy.
Above all, today’s report tells us that we have an opportunity to avert the greatest long-term threat to our planet. I hope that politicians and individuals everywhere take it.
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