By Emily Smith - 31st March 2004
Ten member states have missed the deadline for submitting climate change plans to the European Commission.
France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg have not yet submitted anything at all regarding the ‘emissions trading plan’, under which companies can buy and sell carbon dioxide emissions allowances.
The UK, Portugal and the Netherlands have published allocation plans on official websites but nothing has so far reached Brussels.
A spokesman for the commission said that they “expect the plans to arrive within a reasonable timeframe” but that they had not yet decided what this timeframe was.
“The signals we’ve had from the member states are that we will receive them very soon,” she added, suggesting “soon after Easter” as a possible date.
And Brussels has not yet decided what action it will take against any dawdlers who do not meet the vague “soon” deadline.
“We haven’t committed ourselves to any decision yet in regard to legal measures,” said the spokesman.
Under the emissions trading scheme companies can buy and sell CO2 quotas from each other – thereby ensuring that ‘greener’ companies benefit financially from selling their excess allowances and the overall level of emissions does not go up.
The ten countries due to join the EU on May 1 have until then to submit their plans.
The commission has three months in which to review the plans and ask national governments to make any necessary changes.
“It is perfectly possible to reject a plan in its entirety,” said the spokesman on Thursday, adding that adequate reasons would have to be given for such a decision.
Emissions trading will become law on January 1 2005.
The commission will meet next week to discuss the plans received thus far and any action that needs to be taken.
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