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Climate Change Minister Joan Ruddock said:
"Our latest report to the UN shows what can be achieved when Government, communities and business work together to reduce emissions. We already have significant achievements under our belt, but we know there is more to be done - we must continue to work urgently to reduce our emissions further and faster.

"But our progress report tells those who claim there is no alternative to a high-carbon society: there is an alternative. We're creating an alternative.

"We know that individual actions account for more than 40% of emissions, so I would urge people around the country to use World Environment Day as a chance to assess their own impact on the environment, and take steps to reduce their individual carbon footprint."

The report to the UN outlines the government's policies and programmes in place which are helping the UK nearly double its emissions reductions targets, as well as future policies which help continue to reduce emissions in the long-term.

These include the Climate Change Act, which puts the UK on the path to an 80% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050; the home energy efficiency programme; plans for more renewables, nuclear, and low-carbon fossil fuels; and "championing" of emissions targets for road vehicles, aviation and industry in Europe.

Controversial Policies
It is well know that environmental groups have issues with many of these policies, not least the prospect of new nuclear and coal-fired power stations.  Environmental campaigners, Friends of the Earth have also released a report which claims that the government is seeking to develop policies which allows rich countries, like the United Kingdom, to buy forests as an extension of Carbon Offsetting.

Andy Atkins, Executive Director at Friends of the Earth, said:
"Western governments are cheating us all by plotting to expand carbon offsetting at the UN climate talks - which means avoiding real action through dodgy accounting instead of taking bold action to tackle the climate crisis.

"Carbon offsetting is doing nothing to combat climate change, is putting the lives and livelihoods of millions of people at risk and is entrenching inequality between rich and developing countries' levels of emissions.

"And offsetting is cheating Britons out of the new jobs and industries which investing in green technologies at home would bring.

"Gordon Brown must push for rich countries to deliver on their historic responsibility to cut their emissions first and fast and pay up for their fair share of global costs to fight climate change."

Friends of the Earth contest that offsetting is profoundly unjust, fundamentally flawed, and cannot successfully be reformed because:
"a.  It pays for projects intended to reduce emissions in developing countries while rich countries continue pumping out climate-changing gases with impunity - when the science demands that carbon reductions are made in both developed and developing countries;
b. Often the projects funded would have taken place anyway, so no additional carbon is saved;
c. Many of the projects are fossil-fuel based projects which increase emissions rather than reduce them;
d. Offsetting reduces pressure on rich countries to develop sustainable technologies and provides an excuse for politicians to give the go-ahead to carbon intensive projects such as airport runways and coal-fired power stations;
e. Offsetting increases inequality in carbon consumption between rich and poor countries."

Website
To help people understand the negotiations at Copenhagen, the Government will soon launch a new website, which will contain information on what it hopes to achieve with a global deal, and links to other websites where "citizens can sign a number of pledges calling on world Governments to work together to reach agreement."

The new website will be promoted at The Isle of Wight Festival, which recently put measures in place to make it a more sustainable event with a series of Eco Actions. As part of the Eco Action promotion a message from Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband will be broadcast to festival-goers on the main stage throughout the event from June 12-14, encouraging people to visit the new website and sign up to the campaign to reach a global deal.