Written question asked by Bill Wiggin (Conservative) on Tuesday, 19 July 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 21 July 2005. It was answered by Elliot Morley (Labour) on Monday, 10 October 2005 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Emissions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the likely impact on carbon dioxide emissions in the next decades of the expansion of energy generating capacity in (a) China, (b) India, (c) Brazil, (d) Mexcio and (e) South Africa.

Answer: As the 2004 International Energy Agency ““World Energy Outlook”” indicates, economic growth is the most important driver of energy demand. As Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa continue to experience rapid economic growth, the energy needs of these countries will also continue to grow rapidly.Meeting energy security needs and ensuring access to energy is a major priority for all countries. Economic expansion with the use of existing technologies will have significant implications on carbon dioxide emissions in the forthcoming decades.The ““World Energy Outlook”” points out that is possible to promote economic expansion and meet the challenges of energy security and climate change, through the use of alternative, cleaner technologies. The Government firmly believes that technological co-operation with emerging economies such as China, India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa is vital in developing and deploying low carbon technology globally.At the Gleneagles summit, the UK and our G8 partners demonstrated this commitment to technological co-operation, agreeing a package of measures to work with emerging economies to accelerate progress in clean coal technology, including joint work on a radical solution—stripping out and burying greenhouse gases—which could save one-third of all energy related emissions by 2050.

Secondary information