International development agency Christian Aid accused the government of short-sightedness today after the world's first Climate Change Bill was published containing targets widely condemned as inadequate.

Christian Aid's senior UK political adviser, Eliot Whittington, said: 'The Climate Change Bill is a milestone in the fight against climate change, which we applaud, but it is nonsensical to push through legislation that is based around an out of date target.

'The UK needs a clear target to cut its domestic emissions by at least 80% by 2050, and it needs it now. This is what the science says, and this is what is needed to show other countries that the UK is serious about tackling climate change.'

The Climate Change Bill currently imposes a legal duty on the government to cut emissions by 60% by 2050. Ministers have indicated that the target will be reviewed but only after the bill has been enacted.

Next month, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn is due to attend international negotiations on cutting global emissions. Christian Aid has called on the UK as the first country to set a long-term target on emissions to ensure this target is adequate before it attends this summit.

Whittington said: 'Poor people from around the world are feeling the real impacts of climate change - changing weather patterns undermine their ways of life while increased disasters threaten their lives. The UK has had huge benefit from fossil-fuel based energy, and we should be leading efforts to shift to a low-carbon economy, not lagging behind the science.'

For further information, or to arrange an interview with a Christian Aid climate change expert, contact Andrew Hogg on 0207 523 2058, 0777 628 4953 and ahogg@christian-aid.org or Rachel Baird on 0207 523 2427, 07969 314 117

Notes to editors:

Christian Aid is a member of the Stop Climate Chaos coalition, a growing movement, bringing together environment and development organisations, unions, faith, community and women's groups, working together on climate change. Christian Aid is an international development agency working in around 50 countries with people of all religions and none.