COP26
The President of COP26 was asked—
Climate Change: International Engagement
(Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
(SNP)
What discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing
international engagement on climate change ahead of COP26.
The COP26 President ()
I am in regular contact with Cabinet colleagues on COP26,
including on co-ordinating our international engagement. The
Prime Minister and Ministers across Government are raising
climate change with international counterparts to secure
ambitious climate commitments by November this year.
Does the President agree that diplomatic efforts ahead of COP
will need to be more than discussions with other states, and with
non-state actors as well? What discussions is he having with
non-governmental organisations—in particular, with the Under2
Coalition—ahead of COP, and what role does he envisage their
playing in November?
The hon. Gentleman raises a very important point. We want this to
be the most inclusive COP ever. As he will know, we have set up a
civil society and youth advisory group, which is an opportunity
for groups from the global south and the global north to come
together and discuss issues. I can say to him that, ahead of the
climate and development ministerial meeting we had on 31 March,
we took a lot of feedback from this grouping in deciding what we
needed to discuss.
(Bristol North West) (Lab)
Many stakeholders that would normally engage at COP26—civil
society groups, NGOs, politicians, business leaders—still do not
have clarity about how they will engage at COP in November. I
understand the difficulties related to the pandemic, but can the
President give the House an update today on when guidance will be
provided to stakeholders about online versus offline and whether
presence will be allowed in Glasgow?
I have always been clear, and I reiterated in a speech I gave in
Glasgow with six months to go to COP, that we want this to be a
physical event. That is the basis on which we are planning, and
we are ensuring that we are exploring all measures to ensure this
is covid-secure—safe for the people of Glasgow and, of course,
safe for participants as well.
(Edinburgh North and Leith) (SNP) [V]
The recent G7 agreement on an international minimum corporation
tax shows the significant progress that can be made at such
forums. What can the President-designate tell us about the
environmental Marshall plan the Prime Minister reportedly intends
pursuing at the G7, and how will that impact on the discussions
he is currently having with other countries in his capacity as
COP President?
Matters related to what G7 leaders are discussing will of course
come forward in the communiqué at the end of that process, and
that is up to the Prime Minister and his fellow leaders. What I
can tell the hon. Member is that we had a successful Climate and
Environment Ministers meeting of the G7, which I co-chaired
together with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs. In that meeting, we made commitments on
overwhelmingly decarbonising power systems in the 2030s in the G7
countries, but also commitments on phasing out fossil fuel
support overseas.
Climate Action and Green Recovery
(Denton
and Reddish) (Lab)
What steps the Government are taking to promote climate action
and a green recovery from the covid-19 pandemic ahead of COP26.
(Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)
What steps the Government are taking to promote climate action
and a green recovery from the covid-19 pandemic ahead of COP26.
The COP26 President ()
The Prime Minister’s 10-point plan sets out our blueprint for a
green industrial revolution. The plan invests in green
technologies and industries. It leverages billions of pounds of
private sector investment to create and support up to 250,000
highly skilled green jobs and level up across the UK.
And that is very welcome, but building back better after covid
cannot just apply to us here in the United Kingdom; there
absolutely has to be a global approach. So is the President
frustrated that the big emitters such as Australia, Japan, South
Korea and Russia have only resubmitted their previous climate
pledges, and worse, that Brazil has backtracked on its climate
pledge? What is he doing to convince them that meeting their fair
share is important so that we can achieve the 45% reduction in
emissions to keep our climate change within 1.5° C?
I would just say to the hon. Member that when the UK took on the
COP26 presidency, less than 30% of the global economy was covered
by a net zero target; that is now 70%. All the G7 countries have
committed to 2030 NDCs that are aligned with net zero by 2050. Of
course, he is right that we want all countries, particularly the
big emitters, to come forward with ambitious emissions reduction
targets.
The credibility of the COP presidency rests on demonstrable
climate change action at home. However, the decision by the
Government back in 2015 to scrap the Labour Government’s zero
carbon homes legislation has meant that we have lost 1 million
zero carbon homes in the past five years. It is a simple
question: why do this Government seem to want to allow non-zero
carbon homes to continue to be built?
I would point out to the hon. Member that the UK is the country
in the G20 that has decarbonised its economy fastest since the
year 2000. He will know that the Secretary of State for Business,
Energy and Industrial Strategy is working on a heat and housing
decarbonisation strategy as well. That will come forward, and of
course we will set out our net zero strategy ahead of COP26.
Engagement with North African Partners
(Southport)
(Con)
What steps he has taken to engage with international partners in
north Africa on preparations for COP26. [R]
The COP26 President ()
First, can I thank my hon. Friend for the work that he does as a
trade envoy in north Africa? Of course, I and fellow Ministers
speak to—and, indeed, our whole diplomatic network speaks to and
engages with—Governments across the world, including in north
Africa. In recent months, I have spoken to Ministers in a range
of countries, including Morocco, Sudan and Egypt, which I visited
in February.
What plans are there to sustain engagement in this region in the
forthcoming months?
We are working proactively with countries in the region through
our COP26 energy transition council. We co-chair the adaptation
action coalition with Egypt and we will continue to engage in
north Africa, one of the regions most vulnerable to climate
change.
Engagement with Sustainability Groups
(Totnes) (Con)
What steps he is taking to engage with sustainability groups
ahead of COP26.
Mr Speaker
I call the Vice-President of COP26.
The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth ()
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Sustainability groups and wider civil society are essential
partners to the UK presidency with their links to communities
most impacted by climate change. That is why we have established
the COP26 civil society and youth advisory council, allowing a
regular dialogue with those groups as we plan for COP26, and the
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has also
launched this week the “Plant for our Planet” campaign to
encourage all our constituents, and perhaps my hon. Friend, to
think about the natural world and how we can live and work better
within it.
May I ask the President, and indeed the Vice-President, of COP26
to engage with my constituents and the sustainability groups we
have? It is incredibly welcome to hear the steps they are already
taking, but we would really like to see a Devonian perspective on
COP26 this year.
Well managed agriculture will be a critical contributor to our
planet’s climate solutions, and the UK wishes to use its COP26
presidency to drive the global transition to sustainable
agriculture and land use. We are committed to using our
presidency platform to amplify local climate action, so I am
delighted to hear about the activity being led in my hon.
Friend’s constituency, and COP unit officials would be very happy
to follow up and meet with them.
(Ludlow) (Con)
Devon is not the only area that is leading the way in developing
community action plans, and indeed South Shropshire Climate
Action has produced the first constituency-wide action plan,
which I will be delighted to present both to the President and
the Vice-President following this session. Will there be scope
for such community groups that are leading the way in finding
practical means for communities to help get to net zero to attend
COP26 in Glasgow in order to spread this great practice?
We are really fortunate in the UK to have, as my right hon.
Friend has demonstrated, a passionate civil society that is among
the world leaders in climate action. The UK launched the domestic
“Together for Our Planet” campaign to celebrate climate
initiatives across the UK and to inspire the public—and clearly
they are already inspired—to be more engaged in climate action in
the run-up to COP26. So I would be delighted to receive further
information on climate action from Ludlow, as well as any other
constituency that wishes to submit it, because to be able to
share that is absolutely what COP26 is all about.
Discussions with Welsh Government
(Carmarthen East and Dinefwr) (Ind)
What recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Government in
preparation for COP26.
The COP26 President ()
We are working with the Welsh Government and indeed the other
devolved Administrations to ensure an inclusive and ambitious
summit for the whole of the UK. I have spoken with Welsh
Government Ministers at the COP26 devolved Administration
ministerial group, which I chair, and I look forward to speaking
to , the Welsh Government’s new Minister for Climate
Change, at the group’s next meeting, which is taking place
tomorrow.
Offshore energy generation will have a vital role to play in
achieving Wales’s energy, economic, decarbonisation and wellbeing
goals, yet we are operating at the moment with one hand tied
behind our back, because the Crown Estate has sole responsibility
for allowing development on the seabed. What discussions has the
right hon. Gentleman had with the Welsh Government about
devolving the Crown estates in Wales to Wales, as is the case for
Scotland, as part of the British Government’s COP26 legacy?
As the hon. Gentleman knows, I do of course talk to the devolved
Administrations, but the role of the COP presidency is to ensure
that we get consensus across 197 parties. However, my right hon.
Friend the Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed ()—the Vice-President, as she is now styled—is also
the Energy Minister and the adaptation champion, and she will be
very happy to discuss these matters with him.
Methane Emissions
(Bromley and Chislehurst) (Con)
What progress the Government has made on raising international
ambition to cut methane emissions in preparation for COP26.
The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth ()
As incoming COP President, the UK is committed to reducing all
greenhouse gas emissions and is encouraging all countries to
raise their climate ambition in nationally determined
contributions and long-term strategies ahead of COP26. The UK
announced its NDC last December; it is an all-economy target to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 68% on 1990 levels by
2030, and the UK’s sixth carbon budget will require UK greenhouse
gas emissions to be reduced by 78% by 2035. The emissions scope
of these targets does include methane.
A lot of the debate and discussion focuses on reducing the carbon
footprint. I am glad that the Minister includes methane; as she
will know, over the course of 20 years, 1 tonne of methane will
warm the atmosphere about 86 times more than 1 tonne of carbon.
Given that the UN and Climate & Clean Air Coalition report
demonstrates that we can nearly halve those emissions by 2030 by
using existing technology, will my right hon. Friend assure the
House that the Government will make securing commitments to
reductions in methane a priority at the upcoming COP?
In the UK, we are tackling methane emissions domestically by
supporting the agriculture sector to reduce its emissions further
through the agricultural transition plan. We have made good
progress already to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including
methane, in our domestic agriculture sector. We produce a litre
of milk with 17% less greenhouse gas emissions and a kilogram of
pork with 40% less greenhouse gas emissions than in 1990. In our
role as COP president, the UK has established a new international
dialogue to raise international ambition on the transition to
sustainable agriculture, with around 20 countries currently
participating.
Recycling
(Bosworth) (Con)
What steps he is taking to raise international ambition to
increase recycling ahead of COP26.
The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth ()
The Government are introducing legislation to transform our
environment, including measures to improve how we manage our
resources and waste, through the Environment Bill. We continue to
work with other countries to move towards a resource-efficient
and circular economy.
Dr Evans
I am grateful for the Vice-President of COP26’s answer. I have
had many conversations with passionate young people from schools
around my patch—St Margaret’s School, St Martin’s School and
South Charnwood School—who are dedicated to recycling. They
wanted me to ask: will the Government consider asking for
international targets on recycling rates to drive up recycling
across the globe?
As in my hon. Friend’s constituency, the schoolchildren in my own
constituency are passionate and regularly communicate with me
about reducing waste and reusing materials. The Government’s view
is that taking action is the best way to drive progress,
harnessing that consumer power to drive changes in packaging use
in the goods that we all buy. Our children are the ones who are
going to help all us parents across the country to drive that.
Domestically, we are introducing the extended producer
responsibility scheme to ensure that producers cover the full net
cost recovery for packaging waste, and a deposit return scheme to
increase the recycling of drinks containers. That will help us
achieve a 65% recycling rate by 2035.
Biodiversity Increase
(Epsom and Ewell) (Con)
What steps he is taking through COP26 to help ensure that
increased biodiversity is part of the international strategy to
combat climate change.
The COP26 President ()
Through the COP26 nature campaign, we are driving action to
protect and restore forests and critical ecosystems, as well as
helping to catalyse a sustainable transition of the agriculture
sector and food systems through our forest, agriculture and
commodity trade dialogues.
I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for what he is doing. May I
ask him to step up his work on ensuring that protecting
ecosystems is part of the agreement that we hope will be reached
at COP? I know that we have the summit in China, but the
protection of habitats and ecosystems around the world is such an
important part of dealing with climate change that I hope it will
be part of the deal in the autumn. May I also ask him to put some
pressure on the Brazilian Government over the measures that
appear to be happening there that could accelerate, rather than
reduce, the loss of the Amazon rainforest?
My right hon. Friend raises a very important point. He will know
that the UK co-led the development of the leaders’ pledge for
nature, which almost 90 leaders around the world have endorsed,
committing to global action to protect nature. Of course, we are
campaigning for strong biodiversity targets to be set at the
biodiversity COP in Kunming this October. As he would expect, I
am in contact with the Brazilian Government as well.
Bioeconomy: Research and Innovation
(York Central) (Lab/Co-op)
What steps he is taking to promote investment in research and
innovation in the bioeconomy ahead of COP26.
The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth ()
We are exploring opportunities for strengthened international
collaboration on innovation focused on the bioeconomy through
Mission Innovation, a global initiative to enable affordable
clean energy and achieve the goals of the Paris agreement.
Leveraging growth of the bioeconomy will support clean growth
across multiple sectors and contribute towards achieving net zero
greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
[V]
The climate crisis is turbocharged, as the trajectory of
mitigation ever deviates from planet-saving targets while the
Government move at a glacial pace to establish a climate economy.
BioYorkshire will not only create 4,000 new jobs and upskill
25,000 people but lay the foundations for world-beating research
in biosciences here in York and Yorkshire, offsetting carbon and
waste. All we ask is for the Government to bring forward the
funding already committed ahead of COP26. Will the Minister agree
to do that and meet me to discuss the project and the importance
of BioYorkshire?
I am always happy to meet new, interesting and innovative
projects, and I am very happy to commit to doing that. We are
absolutely leading the way on this. Mission Innovation is an
extraordinary organisation, driving and shining a light on some
of the most forward-thinking processes. One key challenge in
helping developing countries move to clean growth is ensuring
that the technologies that UK businesses and our scientists
invent and take to market can be used in those developing
countries.
UK Negotiating Team: Diversity and Inclusion
(Ealing, Southall) (Lab)
What steps he has taken to champion diversity and inclusivity in
the UK’s COP26 negotiating team.
The COP26 President ()
The UK is committed to championing diversity and inclusion
throughout our COP26 presidency. More than 45% of the senior
management team in the COP26 unit are women, including our chief
operating officer and communications director, and around half
the COP26 negotiating team are women.
Later this year, I am hosting the British South Asian youth
summit, focusing on COP26. Will the Minister meet our youth
champions to hear the perspective of young people living in some
of the areas of the world that are most vulnerable to climate
change?
As I said in response to an earlier question, we have the civil
society and youth advisory group, co-chaired by two young climate
activists, one from the global south and one from the global
north, and on every visit that I do, I meet youth activists. Of
course, I am very happy to look at the event that the hon.
Gentleman is talking about and, if my diary permits, I will
certainly come to it.
Policy Objectives
(Wellingborough)
(Con)
What his policy objectives are for COP26.
The COP26 President ()
Our overarching objective is to keep within reach the target of
limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 °C. To do that, we are
asking countries to set out ambitious emissions reduction
commitments, come forward with plans to protect communities and
nature, mobilise finance and reach agreement on the outstanding
elements of the Paris rulebook.
Mr Bone
Mr Speaker, you will remember when was hugging huskies, and I thought it was a great
idea to try to do something to save the planet, so I got rid of
my polluting petrol car, bought a biofuel car and then discovered
that I was destroying the rainforest. I knew what to do next: get
carbon dioxide down and buy a diesel car; now I know that when I
drive along the street I am poisoning people. Could the President
of COP26 please give me some advice? Before I buy an electric
car, will he assure me that the mining of cobalt and lithium is
not killing people in the mines, or would it just be easier for
me to buy a horse?
That would certainly be sustainable. I am really pleased to hear
that my hon. Friend is indeed a climate activist at heart; it is
a revelation for all of us. It is great that he has made a
decision to purchase an electric vehicle. I can tell him that he
will not be disappointed. Plug-in grants are available and he
knows that the Government are also backing the sector with almost
£3 billion-worth of support.
(Greenwich and Woolwich) (Lab)
As the President of COP26 knows, the International Energy Agency
latest world energy outlook makes it clear that a net zero
pathway for global energy requires that there be no new fossil
fuel supply beyond projects already committed to as of this year.
That means not just coal, but oil and gas. The report reinforces
the obvious need to secure agreement on a global framework for a
managed and fair phase-out of fossil fuels. Will the President
therefore tell the House whether he accepts the IEA’s conclusion
and, if so, whether ending all new fossil fuel supply from next
year will be incorporated into the objectives of the UK’s
presidency of COP26?
I actually commissioned that report and I am very pleased that it
is so substantive. The hon. Gentleman is right: we need to make
sure that we help all countries with a clean energy transition,
and that is what we are doing through the work of the COP26
Energy Transition Council.
Topical Questions
(Harlow) (Con)
If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.
The COP26 President ()
Two weeks ago, I chaired the G7 Climate and Environment Ministers
track with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. At that meeting, the G7
nations agreed overwhelmingly to decarbonise their power systems
in the 2030s, consistent with their 2030 nationally determined
contributions and net zero commitments. In addition, they
committed to take concrete steps to end support for international
coal power generation by the end of 2021. This is a critical step
in consigning coal power to history and accelerating the
international transition to clean energy.
Of course we welcome plans for a cleaner, greener Britain, but
can my right hon. Friend reassure my hard-working Harlow
residents that the Government’s environmental measures will not
mean a more expensive Britain, hitting the low-paid with extra
costs and increasing the cost of living for ordinary folk?
The Government are committed to getting the transition to net
zero right for all consumers. We are committed to driving savings
and making our homes better insulated with more energy-efficient
measures. My right hon. Friend will know that through the energy
company obligation and the expanded warm home discount, we will
provide at least £4.7 billion of extra support to low-income and
vulnerable households between 2022 and 2026.
(Doncaster North) (Lab)
For a successful COP26, we have a particular responsibility as
hosts to build trust with developing countries. The Government’s
decision to cut aid spending—the only G7 country to do so—is
therefore an appalling one, not just because it is wrong in
principle, but because it is staggeringly self-defeating. The
COP26 President knows that that decision makes a successful
outcome at the conference of the parties harder, not easier, so
may I invite him to add his voice to the powerful calls we heard
yesterday, including from the former Prime Minister, the right
hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), to immediately restore
Government aid spending to 0.7% of GDP?
As the right hon. Gentleman knows, the UK is doubling its
international climate finance commitment to support developing
countries; I can tell him that that has been very much welcomed
around the world. With regard to the overall official development
assistance spend, this is a temporary measure, as he knows. As
the economic situation improves, I hope that it will be possible
to restore the 0.7% target at the earliest opportunity.
The problem is that cutting aid spending severely undermines the
ability of developing countries to tackle the challenges of
climate poverty and public health. The COP26 President knows
that: it is what developing countries are telling him in the
negotiations. We need vulnerable countries to be calling for more
ambition from big emitters such as China, but they will be much
more reticent in doing so when they do not feel that we can be
trusted.
Totemic on the issue of trust is the promise made at Copenhagen
for $100 billion of public and private finance for developing
countries. More than a decade on, it still has not been
delivered. It is our job as hosts to deliver on that promise. Can
the COP26 President therefore tell us whether the $100 billion
will finally be delivered this weekend at the G7 meeting?
The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right: the $100 billion is
a totemic figure. We are doing everything we can to ensure that
we are able to deliver it by COP26. I can assure him that I am
having very frank discussions with donor countries—with developed
countries—to ensure that they deliver on that commitment made in
2009.
(South West
Wiltshire) (Con)
Does the COP presidency share my concern at the reputational hit
that the UK will take in the event that it continues to approve
old-style carbon-belching waste incinerators such as the one
proposed at Westbury in my constituency?
The Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth ()
All energy-from-waste plants in England are regulated by the
Environment Agency and must comply with the strict emissions
limits set in legislation. I am aware that Northacre Renewable
Energy Ltd has applied for an environmental permit from the
Environment Agency to operate an incinerator in Westbury,
Wiltshire, and the Environment Agency is considering responses to
the public consultation.
(Edinburgh South West) (SNP) [V]
Some 11% of Scottish renewable generation comes from small
projects such as Harlaw Hydro in my constituency. Ahead of COP26,
will the Government introduce a replacement for the feed-in
tariff that is better placed to encourage similar new projects
than the smart export guarantee scheme?
We will be launching a new contract for difference auction at the
end of this year. The opportunity for a number of smaller sources
of energy storage will be available.
(Dudley North) (Con)
Will the COP26 President detail what steps he has taken to engage
with the G7 ahead of COP26?
May I commend my hon. Friend for all the work that he is doing in
Dudley on supporting the local economy and green jobs? As I set
out earlier, I co-chaired the G7 climate and environment
Ministers meeting, which came forward with some ambitious
commitments.
(Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)
The world is not currently on track to meet our Paris targets, is
it? The current pledges only add up to less than 10% of
emissions; we need 45% to meet the target. In the last
parliamentary Session, 109 MPs signed the climate and ecological
emergency Bill. When it is reintroduced, will the Government give
time to debate it so that, as we did with the Climate Change Act
2008, we can lead the world on legislation, not just follow?
I would recommend that the hon. Gentleman talks to the Leader of
the House on the matter of the timetabling of the debates and
other events in the House. I would also say to him that we are
working very hard and pressing all the big emitters to ensure
that they come forward with the ambition that is required to be
able to halve emissions by 2030.
(Cynon Valley) (Lab)
I am currently doing a lot of work with people in my constituency
on the climate agenda in preparation for the COP summit, and
local schoolchildren and young people are particularly
interested. One child in particular has asked me raise this
question with the President of COP: “To beat climate change we’ve
got to look at it as one whole world. Surely this means giving
more not less help to poorer countries to help them make the
changes needed to save our planet?”
The right hon. Member for Doncaster North () raised this issue with me, and I have set out the
position on overseas aid. In terms of our schools, we are
engaging, and I hope I will shortly be able to send out a pack
that will encourage young people in our schools to get even more
involved in COP26.
