Stern Review into the Economics of Climate Change

The stern review isn't even out yet but that isn't stopping the Buzz (google news coverage).

Bellow are a few of the more interesting articles and some quotes. The review is out tomorrow and there will be an update, including a link to the report.

The timing of this report is superb. The UNFCCC talks are soon to begin in Nairobi, the international day of climate action is also about to occur. In the UK green taxes seem to have the agenda as both Lib Dems and Tories showed considerable interest in these policies during the party conferences. Labour are looking increasingly weak as Blairs' rhetoric is looking shallower by the day.

The next few weeks look to be an interesting time for UK climate politics...all set against the background of the UK's warmest ever year.


Monsters and Critics

Sir Nicholas Stern, a former World Bank economist, said action needs to
taken immediately to prevent the disasters that would arise from floods, storms
and other natural catastrophes brought on by a warmer world, reports the
Independent newspaper.

In a 700-page report for the government of Prime Minister Tony Blair, Stern said the world would have to pay 1 per cent of its annual GDP to avert disaster. But doing nothing would cost up to 20 times that amount.

The BBC Report

According to BBC business correspondent Hugh Pym, the report will carry
weight because Sir Nicholas, a former World Bank economist, is seen as a neutral
figure. Unlike earlier reports, his conclusions are likely to be seen as
objective and based on cold, hard economic fact, our correspondent said.

The Guardian

'There will need to be a global response [to Stern], but it must also filter
down to change at domestic level,' he told an audience of businessmen in China
this weekend. 'For the Labour party there must be no no-go areas for policy
debate. The politics of taxation is changing and we need to be leading the
debate, not playing catch-up. We should consider how we can change the structure of our tax system in a way which benefits the lowest-paid and penalises
environmentally damaging activity.'

International Herald Tribune

Last week, Blair and his Dutch counterpart, Jan Peter Balkenende, wrote an
open letter to their fellow European leaders on global warming. "We
have a window of only 10 to 15 years to take the steps we need to avoid crossing
catastrophic tipping points," it said. "These would have serious consequences
for our economic growth prospects, the safety of our people and the supply of
resources, most notably energy." Brown, who is expected to replace
Blair when he steps down as prime minister next year, recently said he would use
the Stern Review to alert governments around the world that they have been too
slow to recognize — let alone fight — the threat of climate change

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