It is a matter of some national pride for Japan that the first concerted international effort to tackle climate change, the Kyoto Protocol, should bear the name of its ancient capital. But behind that pride, for Japan’s industrialists at least, lies the feeling that its Kyoto negotiators in 1997 were duped into giving away too much.

Indeed, the then number one polluter, the US, never ratified Kyoto at all. Japan’s commitment to cut carbon emissions by 6 per cent from 1990 levels was brave – some might say rash – given that its industry was already as energy efficient as any in the world. But today’s carbon emissions are running at 6.4 per cent above 1990 levels, leaving Japan with a potentially huge bill to make up the difference by buying carbon credits.