§ The Minister for the Environment (Mr. Elliot Morley)On 24 July 2003, on behalf of the British-Irish Council (BIG) Environment Group, my Department is publishing the report scenarios of climate change for islands within the BIC region. The report builds on the climate change scenarios for the UK published by my Department last year and provides new detail on how climate is likely to change for the islands of the BIC region—Channel Islands, Isle of Man, Western Isles, Orkney Islands, and Shetland Islands. There is now considerable interest in climate change impacts and adaptation in the island administrations following awareness-raising workshops at the end of last year, and the scenarios will provide a sound basis for further work in this area. These new scenarios represent a concrete example of how BIC can foster co-operation between the UK, Ireland and the island administrations on environmental issues of common interest like climate change.
Copies of the report will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses on the day of the launch.