One of the beacons to slow down climate change is to maintain a maximum temperature increase of one and a half degrees worldwide, but even this seems to be becoming unsustainable. “To keep this figure in sight, more deals would have been needed, especially to reduce CO2 pollution,” says Thijssen. ‘The Netherlands has not shown enough in Egypt that we are doing what is necessary. So, in that sense, the climate summit really failed. Next year there will be even less time and countries will have to work even harder.’
Breakthrough
A last-ditch effort by European Commissioner Frans Timmermans to force a breakthrough was also unsuccessful. Thijssen: ‘On Friday, Timmermans said he understands that poor countries that have little or no participation in climate change but suffer harm from it, which is why he made the proposal. But in the end he is sent to Egypt by 27 ministers, including our own minister. And he has very big words about the climate, but in the end he doesn’t even take the necessary steps to show that we are drastically reducing our CO2 pollution.’
Slow down
According to the CPB, the Dutch CO2 reduction rate is also too slow, says Thijssen. “And instead of Minister Jetten immediately taking extra steps and going to Egypt himself to get his family book in order, he will set up a committee and have a study done. So now it is to be hoped that in March he will take the measures that add up to the strong CO2 reduction. Not only does Rob Jetten do it, but he does it in multiple countries as well. And that is the problem with this summit: there have been many big words, but Holland has shown that, as a rich and vulnerable country, it arrived in Egypt unprepared.’