These Regulations complete transposition of Directive 2009/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme of the Community and the UK. They also consolidate and replace previous instruments transposing Directive 2003/87/EC, and implement to the extent necessary a number of directly applicable European Commission Regulations adopted under the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) Directive as so amended.
On 23 April 2009 the Council of the EU and the European Parliament adopted Directive 2009/29/EC amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme of the Community. It came into force on 25 June 2009, and Member States have to fully transpose it into national legislation by 31 December 2012.
The revised Directive is designed to be more environmentally ambitious in order to deliver greater emissions reductions whilst also increasing scarcity in the carbon market. It includes a centralised, EU-wide cap on emissions with an annually declining trajectory which will deliver an overall reduction of 21% below 2005 emissions by 2020. It also includes provisions for the introduction of new sectors and gases, and harmonised rules on free allocation with a move toward greater auctioning of allowances. These rules are designed to ensure a more consistent approach to implementation of the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) across the EU.
