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The British government's chief scientist, Sir Robert May, has acknowledged that the government's promise to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 per cent of 1990 levels by 2010 will be “difficult” to achieve, but says it should remain a target.

Speaking at the launch of a briefing document on climate change written for Prime Minister Tony Blair, May said that reductions would have to come from all sectors of energy use: road transport, domestic use and industry. “Industry should see climate change as opportunity not as threat,” he said.

But it appears unlikely that the government will formally commit itself to a 20 per cent reduction if — as is expected — the December conference of the United Nations climate convention in Kyoto, Japan, agrees on lower greenhouse gas targets. The UK government has said it will not outline specific policies and measures until well after the Kyoto conference.

An interdepartmental working group of officials from the departments of the environment and trade, and the Treasury, has begun to look into how Britain could achieve a 20 per cent reduction. An environment department spokesman says that the group is not expected to report until the middle of 1998 at the earliest. Meanwhile, the combined Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions has begun drawing up proposals for an integrated transport policy.