Climate change envoy's carbon footprint is 30 times British average

John Ashton, whose role is to persuade other countries to reduce CO2 emissions, has made so many foreign trips by air in his job that his carbon footprint is already 30 times bigger than the UK average.

Figures obtained under Freedom of Information legislation show he has flown more than 80,000 miles since his appointment last June.

If he continues at this pace, he will clock up an annual mileage equivalent to flying five times round the globe.

The 50-year-old former diplomat's travels have taken him to climate-change conferences in Moscow, Stockholm, Beijing, Washington, Chicago, Berlin, Houston, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Bombay, Delhi, Nairobi and Copenhagen.

On five of his trips he accompanied Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett, who was responsible for his appointment.

By the end of his first year in office, Mr Ashton's travel schedule will have added 22.3 tons to his personal carbon footprint, compared with the average Briton's 0.7 tons.

Environmental campaigners say more use should have been made of video-conferencing.

Mrs Beckett came in for similar criticism when she was Environment Secretary. She was dubbed "Minister for Air Miles' after it was revealed that she had flown 100,000 miles and helped to create nearly 200 tons of carbon emissions in less than three years.

The Foreign Office claimed that all Mr Ashton's trips were necessary and that the greenhouse gas emissions had been 'offset' as part of the department's commitment to become carbon neutral.

A spokesman said: "His role is to engage with major developed and developing countries to drive forward the international response to climate change.

"This necessitates attendance at international conferences and negotiations, as well as bilateral meetings with Ministers and senior officials.

"All the greenhouse gas emissions generated by his travel are offset so there is no net impact on the climate.

"This is done under a cross- government policy which came into effect last April. The Foreign Office led the way in offsetting its Ministers' and officials' air travel from 2005."

But experts say such schemes - which often involve planting trees in the developing world to absorb greenhouse gases emitted by a single flight - are ineffective.

Professor Stefan Gossling, who published a study earlier this year, said:

"These schemes may eventually recapture the carbon people emit now but will only finish the job after most of them have died. That is too long."