British Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband told reporters afterwards that "nobody was talking about plan B", while the US special envoy for climate change Todd Stern insisted his country was "fully committed" to a deal.

Earlier, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown warned that the world faces "catastrophe" if action is not agreed at the UN talks in Copenhagen, which start in 49 days.

But there is growing concern that a treaty deal could be hampered by issues including US domestic politics and the problems of securing agreement between developed and developing countries.

Miliband and Stern spoke following a meeting of the Major Economies Forum (MEF), a grouping of 17 top polluters which give off around 90 percent of global emissions.

Asked about concerns that a deal may not be done in Copenhagen, Miliband said: "This deadline has concentrated minds and I think it's really important we strain every sinew to get an agreement in December."

He added: "Nobody was talking about plan B and I think that's really encouraging."

Pointing to progress in the talks on issues such as climate financing, Miliband admitted that while securing a deal would be an "uphill battle... it's more doable today than it was yesterday".

The final communique said there was "substantial agreement" that "significantly scaled up financing will be important" in any climate deal.

Stern, who warned Saturday it was possible there may not be an agreement in December, added: "There's more progress to be made but we think it can be done."

But when asked if the United States was committed to bringing enough to the table at the UN talks, he again stressed the role developing countries have to play over developed nations such as his own.

"The capacity of the world to get where we need to go... is going to be enormously more determined by what happens in China and the other developing countries going forward, it's just a fact," Stern said.

He added that 97 percent of the growth of emissions between now and 2030 is going to come out of the developing world.

Stern also suggested that US President Barack Obama could attend the Copenhagen talks in person "in the right circumstances".

When asked how the situation in the US Senate, currently debating climate change legislation, could affect December's summit, he said the US government must "bend every effort" to move "as far and as fast as we can".

Earlier, Brown warned the MEF that they "should never allow ourselves to lose sight of the catastrophe we face if present warming trends continue."

He said he shared the concerns of low-lying island states such as the Maldives, whose government held an underwater cabinet meeting Saturday to focus global attention on rising sea levels that threaten to submerge them.

Asked if he shared Brown's assessment of the threat, Stern said: "You should ask a scientist."

The MEF comprises Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Britain, and United States.

Campaign group Greenpeace said it was concerned that the United States was "threatening the possibility of a strong international climate deal" to keep global temperature rise below two degrees Celsius.

The group's climate political advisor, Martin Kaiser, called on the European Union to "stand behind its stated goals of saving the climate and reject US attempts to water down the entire agreement to suit its domestic agenda".

related report
Canada lawmakers urged to push through climate bill
A Canadian opposition party on Monday urged lawmakers to push through a bill setting out deep cuts in carbon dioxide emissions and avoid being embarrassed at a key climate conference in December.

A vote Wednesday could delay the bill's long journey into law beyond the UN conference in Copenhagen, said Jack Layton, leader of the leftist New Democratic Party, which first tabled the legislation more than three years ago.

"Canada would simply have to go and stand naked before the world with (Prime Minister) Stephen Harper's terrible position on climate change," warned Layton.

"Having more talk about a crisis is not what we need right now," he added. "We have a level of consensus on this issue that has been extraordinary globally and Canada should be in the forefront."

The Climate Change Accountability Act would commit the Canadian government to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2050 from 1990 levels in line with its Kyoto Protocol obligations.

Harper's ruling Conservatives say the targets -- agreed to by a previous administration -- are unattainable, and in 2007 laid out a new plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 60-70 percent by 2050 from 2006 levels.

Layton accused the government of "having no plan" to stem climate change and of "being increasingly seen as a pariah on greenhouse gas pollution."

The NDP bill, first proposed in October 2006, has been stalled time and again by political wrangling, and last year by elections. Its third reincarnation was supported by a majority in an April parliamentary vote.

The separatist Bloc Quebecois is expected to support it again on Wednesday.

It is not yet clear if the two parties will be joined by the main opposition Liberals. The bill could become a no-confidence vote in Harper's government with Canada facing the prospect of a fourth election in five years.

Share This Article With Planet Earth

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Related Links
Climate Science News - Modeling, Mitigation Adaptation

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News