The Daily Summit - Instant news and comments from the World Summit on Sustainable Development: Other countries Archives

David Steven | 06:45 PM | |

August 12, 2002

Canada keeps teasing over climate change, with today's news that it's finding it too difficult to make a decision over ratification.

"This is the most complex issue the international community has ever faced up to," says Environment Minister David Anderson. "Ending the Second World War was not as difficult."

Presumably Mr Anderson is referring to the decision to use of nuclear weapons to force Japanese surrender. Daily Summit finds this a very odd analogy.

David Steven | 08:47 AM | |

August 5, 2002

NZ needs Scandinavian taxation? Dr Morgan Williams, New Zealand's Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, has criticised the country's record on sustainable development in a new report prepared for WSSD:

"In the period following the 1992 Earth Summit New Zealand had the opportunity to become a leading light on sustainable development," he argues. "Instead, sustainable development has not progressed in a coordinated and meaningful fashion. Current trends in consumption of energy and natural resources, production of waste, growth in urban areas, biodiversity losses and biosecurity threats, land-use and water issues in both rural and urban areas, and air quality in urban areas are all signs that New Zealand is not functioning in a sustainable manner."

According to the New Zealand Herald, he then then went further in a briefing for journalists, calling for lower economic growth and higher taxes.

"We are very, very light on environmental taxes," he told the paper. "They are about half the OECD level, and well behind the leading countries like Denmark."

See also, Saturday's report from Australia...

Update: The Commissioner's office tells the Daily Summit that the Herald's story is wrong and the quote about taxation is "innacurate." A fuller story from the Herald is here.

David Steven | 11:06 AM | |

August 3, 2002

Australia behind Daniel Esty yeterday led an attack on Australia's environment record.

"There is no country in the world that has swung more sharply in the last 10 years than Australia. The US was not a leader in `92, it was sort of dragged along in some respects - it did well on some issues, less well on others. But Australia was right out front, in `92, on a whole set of issues. And today I would say Australia stands arm-in-arm with the US at the trailing end of efforts to address these global-scale problems and to take the environment seriously."

Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, will not be attending the summit.

Would be interesting to hear if there's been any reaction to this from down under. Tim Blair? Anyone?

David Steven | 03:14 PM | |

July 29, 2002

North/South Also in Doyle's piece, Indian Commerce Minister, Murasoli Maran, leads the developing world's attack on the rich world's inconsistent support for the free movement of goods, labour and services.

"The North is entering its shell of protectionism," he says. "They want to prevent the South from using the only competitive advantage they have: abundant labor."

David Steven | 09:48 AM | |

July 28, 2002

Word from Nigeria "Only 15 per cent of the world population, in high income countries, account for 56 per cent of the world's total consumption, while the poorest 40 per cent, in low-income countries, account for only 11 per cent," says Nigerian Minister of Environment, Alhaji Muhammad Kabir Sa'id. "While most people consume more today, the consumption expenditure of average African household is 20 per cent less than it was 25 years ago!"

David Steven | 09:41 PM | |

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