Opening the Low Carbon Prosperity Summit which he co-hosted with HRH Prince of Wales, European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek made the following remarks to open the meeting in the European Parliament in Brussels.

"The European Parliament is the most environmentally aware political assembly in the world. Since our first direct elections in 1979, we have had a Committee which deals with the environment. Here ideas become laws.

But before such laws can be passed, we need conferences such as this one. The ideas generated here help make laws better, because through these discussions we can find the solutions of tomorrow.

Our special guest, and co-host of this conference, the Prince of Wales, has been actively engaged in both environmental issues and in climate change for over twenty five years.

In his day to day life and in the charities he is involved in, he sets an example on how to live, and how to let future generations live on our planet.

I will mention only one of his many initiatives - the Prince's Rainforest Project which helps to save tropical forests from destruction by man.

You were here last three years ago, and told our Members that the "Doomsday clock of climate change is ticking". I can assure you that the European Union has done a lot to slow this clock down!

Our new EU 2020 Strategy will help us create a green, low carbon economy by investments in innovation and new technologies.

The European Energy Community which was proposed in this Parliament last May, and which we are building step by step, will not only reduce the costs but also the use of electricity and gas. The cleanest energy is the one we do not have to produce, and do not have to use.  We did not propose a new treaty or new institutions, but we saw such a Community as a brand name to package the ideas which are currently on the table. Because we need a shift in the way we think about energy, and we need to create political momentum for long term decisions.

Three topics were the most important in this European Energy Community initiative:  (1) cross border interconnectors for gas and electricity which will allow us to build a single market in energy; (2) coordination of the purchase of energy resources from outside of the EU; and (3) joint EU research in new technologies to produce low carbon green energy at an affordable price

Our goals of three times twenty set the environmental benchmarks for the rest of the world.  But yes, we have to do more.

We will only achieve a Low Carbon Economy if there is genuine cooperation between the public, the private and the non-governmental sectors. We politicians have to create the legal framework that you can operate in. While the business community has to continue being socially responsible.

Our voters, are your clients, or sympathisers, but what is most important is that they are the same people - the 500 million Europeans who wish to live in a world which is environmentally friendly."

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Note to editors:

The Summit can be watched on Europe by Satellite, where TV footage from the TV pool meeting will also be available for download:
http://ec.europa.eu/avservices/ebs/schedule.cfm?page=3&date=02/10/2011&institution=0

  

Full photo coverage available for download:
http://audiovisual.europarl.europa.eu/

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For further information:
Robert A. Golański
Spokesman
Mobile: +32 475 751 663

Richard Freedman
Press Officer
Mobile: +32 498 983 239