President Obama must come to Copenhagen to save climate change talks says Ed Miliband

President Obama must personally intervene to ensure the world reaches an ambitous deal to stop catastrophic global warming, according to British energy minister Ed Miliband.

By Louise Gray, Environment Correspondent Published: 1:16PM BST 16 Oct 2009

The UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December is due to agree a replacement to the Kyoto Protocol.
However so far the 190 countries involved in the deal have failed to agree on how the world can keep temperature rise below two degrees C (3.6 degrees F).

Mr Miliband, the UK Energy and Climate Change Secretary, said it would help if world leaders attend the conference to ensure all countries take action on cutting carbon emissions.
Gordon Brown, the British Prime Minister, has already pledged to attend and President Obama is likely to be in the area having picked up his Nobel Peace Prize at around the same time.
Mr Miliband pointed out that the key decision to keep temperature rise below 2 degrees C (3.6 degrees F), at the G8 Summit in July, only happened because it was pushed by world leaders rather than just negotiators.
"I think the involvement of leaders is absolutely essential," he said.
In a last-ditch attempt to ensure an ambitious deal is met, the UK is hosting the Major Economies Forum (MEF) next week that will bring together ministers and officials from around the world.
Mr Miliband said the Government was "determined to throw everything" at getting a successful deal.
"The day will concentrate minds, the MEF is bringing pieces together. We are throwing everything at it. We are determined to get a deal at Copenhagen," he said.
He said rich countries must agree to legally binding mid-term targets to cut carbon emissions. At the moment this will be in the range of 25 and 40 per cent by 2020. This will be particularly difficult for the US where the President Obama is struggling to get through the necessary legislation.
"We are going all out to get an agreement with numbers. You cannot have success at Copenhagen without numbers," he said. "Numbers are absolutely essential."
Mr Miliband also said poorer countries like China and India need to agree to take action by agreeing to cut emissions against "business as usual".
"We also need developing countries to take action because there is no solution to the problem of climate change – given that most of the emissions will come from developing countries in the future – unless they do something."