Danish Government Wants Population Control in Climate Agreement

The daily Berlingske Tidende reports on its front page, today, that the Danish government wants to have population control in the climate agreement to be reached at the UN COP15 Climate summit coming up on Dec. 6-18 in Copenhagen.

According to the paper, Danish Development Minister Ulla Toernaes acknowledges that such a policy is controversial: "This is a big taboo in several countries. But Denmark is obliged to put it on the agenda and get it into the climate agreement. Partly because it's a key Danish policy that we support womens' right to choose how many children they want. Partly because there is a link between population growth and climate change." She notes that she has complete backing from the Danish Prime Minister on the issue.

Ulla Toernaes knows that there is no consensus in the EU on the matter, yet, but states that "I very much hope we can reach that in the weeks leading up to the meeting in Copenhagen," and points to a recent report from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) that makes the same point.