Gordon Brown: A high-carbon official

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown is responsible for far more carbon emissions than three of his EU counterparts, according to a new report from the French eco-publication, Terra Eco.

As reported in an article in today’s Yahoo! Green, Brown’s travels last year resulted in the emissions of 8,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent …even though he flew fewer kilometres than German Chancellor Angela Merkel (7,400 tonnes of carbon equivalent), French President Nicolas Sarkozy (7,100 tonnes) or Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero (6,700 tonnes).

While Brown flew just 158,000 kilometres in 2008 — compared to 324,000 kilometres for Sarkozy and 175,000 kilometres each for Merkel and Zapatero — he tends to fly on larger and less fuel-efficient jets than the other officials. (The article notes Downing Street wouldn’t identify the exact models Brown uses, so his footprint was calculated using information from aviation experts and journalists.)