KYOTO PROTOCOL (Singapore's delay in ratification)

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KYOTO PROTOCOL:

(Singapore's delay in ratification): 8.

Dr Geh Min asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources whether Singapore's delay in ratifying the Kyoto Protocol will damage our international reputation and credibility as a responsible member of the global community.

Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, climate change is now regarded as a key environmental challenge confronted by the global community. There is a need for concerted efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As an island state, Singapore shares this global concern, and is supportive of the various international efforts taken to address this challenge.

Sir, the Kyoto Protocol (KP) is an international agreement that reflects the

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parties' commitment to addressing climate change. It is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Singapore ratified the UNFCCC in 1997. The KP entered into force in February 2005, and legally commits 39 Annex I parties, covering mostly developed countries, to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 5.2% below the 1990 levels by 2008 to 2012. For non-Annex I countries, including Singapore, there are no emission reduction targets set for them under the KP.

Nevertheless, we have been consulting and working closely with the various stakeholders to come up with realistic and viable climate change solutions. Examples include our first Roundtable on Climate Change in May 2005 which involved representatives from industry, academia, NGOs and the media, as well as our current review of the Singapore Green Plan 2012.

Sir, we agree that acceding to the Kyoto Protocol would be consistent with Singapore's image as a responsible international citizen with a reputation for good domestic environmental practices, and we are now reviewing the timing of our accession to the Kyoto Protocol.

Dr Geh Min (Nominated Member): Mr Speaker, Sir, it seems to me that climate change is wider than just a local environmental problem. Other countries have addressed it on a national level. The Prime Minister of Britain has again stated that it would be one of his priorities just after his re-election. May I ask the Minister if this issue is being dealt with on an inter-ministerial level or is it only just the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources which is looking into it? It seems to me that Ministries like the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade and Industry would be very much involved in decisions on climate change.

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Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: Sir, again, the answer is, yes, this is an important piece of commitment by the Singapore Government, so it has to be taken at the Government level. We have been consulting other agencies, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade and Industry. I think Dr Geh Min is aware that the Ministry, of course, while taking the lead, has brought on board all the various agencies to discuss a climate change programme that we can adopt as a country in Singapore. So, it has to be a comprehensive effort. The Ministry has been responsible primarily because it has come under MEWR, but we have been working closely with the other Government agencies. When we decide to accede to KP, it is not MEWR's decision but it is the decision of the Singapore Government and, therefore, all the agencies responsible will have to play their part.

Dr Geh Min: Sir, is there any framework within which these Ministries are working, and when is Singapore likely to accede to the Kyoto Protocol?

Assoc. Prof. Dr Yaacob Ibrahim: I will take Mr Khaw Boon Wan's answer yesterday, in due course. As to the hon. Member's second question, we are studying the timing.

Regarding the hon. Member's first question, as I mentioned earlier, we are putting together a framework that will help not only MEWR but also the various agencies responsible. Let me just cite a very simple example. My Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Assoc. Prof. Koo Tsai Kee, chairs an inter-Ministerial committee that looks at energy efficiency for our buildings and other infrastructures in Singapore. So, certainly, there is a framework that is being put in place that will involve all the relevant agencies.