David Begg has stepped in to save the seemingly doomed climate talks in Copenhagen this week, with a radical plan to solve the global warming crisis.

Begg's suggestion has received widespread praise from First World leaders, though many Third World countries say this is yet another blow to their struggling economies in already tough times.

Begg took to the podium late yesterday evening to make his radical suggestion:
"We now have the technology to build a large sun-blocking device over the earth, held in place by six orbiting satellites. According to my calculations, we can counteract the effects of global warming by simply blocking the sun for 12 days of the year. Of course this would be just an interim measure until we overhaul the entire energy system, but this 'unpaid sun leave' is the most sensible solution to our current overspend on the sun."

Begg's suggestion, while warmly received, hasn't been a hit with everyone. Global Warming activist Al Gore described it as "utter nonsense".

"I just don't believe we can simply take away 12 days of the sun an expect things will run normally. It would cause chaos. There would be public outcry."

Begg was adamant however, that this was not the case: "This is just part of a bigger plan to completely rebuild the energy framework from the bottom up. We could spread the 12 days over a longer period of time; it doesn't have to happen all at once.

Begg went on to explain that the "Sunblocker" could be built in Ireland by skilled workers from the construction industry who now find themselves unemployed, thus simultaneously solving Ireland's jobs crisis.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen was strangely quiet on the issue, claiming it needs "some thought". When asked about her opinion on the plan, Mary Harney said "as long as I can keep using the jet."

- Eric Kennord