EU detour will increase air miles

EU LEADERS en route to a summit to discuss climate change in Brussels next month will detour in their private jets to Lisbon first to sign the new treaty.

Environmental organisations have criticised the double flight as adding to CO2 emissions at a time when governments are discussing efforts to combat global warming.

It was expected that signing the treaty and the summit would have been held in the same place to reduce the amount of air miles leaders clock up in December.

But the Portuguese, who hold the rotating EU presidency, insisted the treaty be signed in their capital city and thereafter be known as the Treaty of Lisbon.

Legally all summits must be held in Brussels following a change agreed seven years ago, and diplomats found no way around this over the past few weeks.

So, having flown to Europe’s most westerly country on December 13 for the private signing ceremony and lunch, the 27 leaders and heads of state will then travel on to Brussels.

Whether they return in their private planes to their own countries, or fly on to Brussels that evening, will be up to each country to decide.

Their summit on December 14 has been shortened to a one-day meeting to begin at 10 am and finish at 5pm, and will also include a working lunch.

They will get a report on the UN meeting on climate change in Bali which finishes that day and discuss progress on reducing carbon emissions — declared top priority aims by British PM Gordon Brown and French President Nicholas Sarkozy.

The prime ministers of Belgium and Luxembourg will fly with the Dutch prime minister in the government jet to Lisbon for the summit to reduce their carbon footprint, the Dutch government has said.