Not long after environmental groups lambasted the UK Government's cop-out on carbon offsets, the policy directors of some of the country’s leading development and aid agencies have now written a letter to The Times weighing-in on the debate. If you were persuaded by some of the development claims of the offset industry, then square that with the likes of Oxfam, the World Development Movement, Christian Aid, Tearfund, Practical Action and the New Economics Foundation who said today:

‘If all rich countries seek to do this [offset] then not only will we shift the cutting of emissions on to the shoulders of nations poorer and less responsible for the problem than ourselves, but we will not tackle climate change.’

The message doesn't get any simpler, and thankfully, more and more prominent voices in the environment and development movements are speaking out against the carbon offset industry.

Read the full letter on The Times website.

Read the NI Special Issue on Carbon Offsets.