The weakened target would let countries buy foreign carbon credits to cover up to 5pc of the 90pc emissions-cutting goal. That would effectively weaken to 85pc the emissions cuts required from European industries, and pay foreign countries to cut emissions on Europe's behalf to make up the rest. The EU also agreed to consider the option, in future, to use international carbon credits to meet a further 5pc of the 2040 emissions reductions - potentially shaving another 5pc off the domestic target.
The nearly 200 countries that signed up to the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate action were already called on by the UN to put forward updated policies on curbing emissions in February, a deadline that was extended till the end of September. Denmark and Spain are among the EU nations that approve a European Commission proposal to cut emissions by 90% by 2040, which was to form the basis of the plan to present to the UN for goals to be achieved by 2035.