Therefore, although the lowering of the targets mostly reflects a lower starting point rather than a significant increase in ambition, it means that we have less distance to travel to the 2020 target of a 42 per cent reduction against 1990 levels.Indeed, we are halfway there because of the recession. That is not a point for celebration, and it leaves for us all a sting in the tail: in future years, as the country comes out of recession and there is economic growth, it must be sustainable and low.