Climate Change Bill [HL]

It may well, but the climate change committee could decide on the mechanism for tapering in carbon trading. Buying indulgences abroad may increase as years go by but, by having a tapering mechanism in place, the whole thing would reduce. I said earlier that we should not put a percentage into this Bill, as we would only be guessing. The setting of limits for carbon credits should be left to the committee of experts. Indeed, I understand that Brussels is currently looking at setting those limits centrally, so it would be entirely inappropriate for us to put a limit in the Bill before the EU had deliberated. Doing so would make our position inflexible—another reason why the setting of limits should, we believe, be delegated to the committee so that it can look at all the facts and evidence. We have tabled amendments to that effect, which we shall debate later.