Writing in The Independent, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown says: "In every era there are only one or two moments when nations come together and reach agreements that make history because they change the course of history. Copenhagen must be such a time.

There are now fewer than 50 days to set the course of the next 50 years and more....We must never lose sight of the catastrophe we face if present warming trends continue.... The threat is not confined to the developing world....And the threat is not only humanitarian and ecological, it is also an economic one. Three years ago, the Stern Report, which I commissioned, concluded that failure to avoid the worst effects of climate change could lead to global GDP being up to 20 percent lower than it otherwise would be - an economic cost greater than the losses caused by two World Wars and the Great Depression.

Let us be in no doubt then that this is a profound moment for our world - a time of momentous choice. And we must be the people who act." [The Independent (UK)/Factiva]