Response to the outcome of the European Parliament’s Plenary vote on EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) back-loading proposals
The EP’s Plenary has rejected the back-loading proposals by a margin of 334-315.
In response to the outcome of the vote, a DECC spokesperson said:
“The UK Government is disappointed at the Parliament’s vote but respects its view.
“The UK understands that the ENVI Committee will now discuss the proposals once more, and therefore hopes that a positive outcome can still be achieved.
“In parallel, the UK Government feels that we should now focus on the real issue – the urgent need for structural reform.
“The UK has been discussing with participants and stakeholders how best to reform the EU ETS and similar debates will be taking place in other countries.
“The Commission must now bring forward concrete legislative proposals for reform of the EU ETS later this year, following their current consultations on their Carbon Market Report.
“The UK has long argued for a move to tighten the EU ETS cap and supports cancellation of an ambitious volume of allowances as one way to bring this about”.