The Minister for the Environment, Marian Hobbs, will attend an international ministerial meeting on climate change in The Netherlands next week.

The meeting will be an important contribution to preparations for the sixth Conference of Parties (COP6) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in The Hague, from 13 - 24 November.

"COP6 will be crunch time for making the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change ratifiable," Marian Hobbs said. "New Zealand is acknowledged internationally as playing an important role on the issue of climate change. Our intention to ratify the Kyoto Protocol in mid-2002 puts us, together with the 15 members of the European Union, among the first countries to make such a commitment.

"Next week's high-level consultation will bring together a group of key ministers to discuss the current state of the negotiation process and inject clear political commitment to ensure a successful outcome of COP6."

Marian Hobbs leaves New Zealand on Monday afternoon and arrives back on Saturday morning.

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