- Tackling climate change and biodiversity loss in the Pacific
remains top priority says UK Minister,
- The UK will welcome NZ agritech companies next month to build
new research, science and innovation links.
- Speech on last day of visit to Australia, Vanuatu and New
Zealand - to boost ties with the UK’s Pacific partners.
Tackling climate change and biodiversity loss in the Pacific
should remain a top priority for the UK and New Zealand, says a
visiting British Foreign Minister.
At the British High Commission in Wellington to an audience of
diplomats, policy-makers and academics, , the UK Minister for Asia
and the Middle East, welcomed New Zealand’s pledge to reduce
carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
On the last day of her tour to Australia, Vanuatu and New
Zealand, she also underlined the joint UK / New Zealand
commitment to deliver on the Glasgow Climate Pact,
which pledges to cut emissions and limit global warming to below
1.5°C.
Tackling climate change and biodiversity loss in the Pacific
should remain a top priority for the UK and New Zealand, says a
visiting British Foreign Minister.
At the British High Commission in Wellington to an audience of
diplomats, policy-makers and academics, , the UK Minister for Asia
and the Middle East, welcomed New Zealand’s pledge to reduce
carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
On the last day of her tour to Australia, Vanuatu and New
Zealand, she also underlined the joint UK-New Zealand commitment
to deliver on the Glasgow Climate Pact,
which pledges to cut emissions and limit global warming to below
1.5°C.
Minister for Asia and the Middle East, said:
I heard first-hand in Vanuatu about the impacts of climate change
in the Pacific, and the importance of supporting Pacific Island
countries to build resilience.
The UK and New Zealand are working with partners to ensure those
countries can access climate finance, and that Pacific Island
voices are heard.
The Minister’s visit to the region - to boost diplomatic and
trade ties with the UK’s vital Pacific partners - follows COP26
President Alok Sharma’s tour last month to Australia, New Zealand
and Fiji, and the meeting of Prime Ministers and Jacinda Ardern in London
on 1 July 2022.
At that meeting, the leaders signed a new research, science and
innovation arrangement which will see both countries share
expertise and develop new technologies, including in the fields
of agriculture and climate-change.
As part of this agreement, the Minister announced the UK will
welcome some of New Zealand’s most advanced agritech companies
next month to build new links, with some of the UK’s leading
firms visiting New Zealand on a similar mission in November.
On the UK’s recent trade deal with New Zealand, Minister Milling
said:
We are also looking forward to our free trade agreement entering
into force and watching our trade with New Zealand soar. But this
about so much more than business opportunities. It’s about the
participation of indigenous people and women in trade. And it’s
about a greener deal; bolstering commitments to the Paris
agreement and Net Zero, while encouraging investment in
low-carbon tech.
Finally, on Ukraine, Minister Milling thanked New Zealand for its
support in standing against Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine
arguing Putin has “thrown the international rules out of the
window, shattered global stability and stamped on the principle
of territorial sovereignty.”
She went on to add that: “We must ensure that Putin loses, and
that Russian aggression is never again allowed to shatter peace,
freedom and democracy in Europe.”
While in New Zealand, Minister Milling visited Auckland, the
Waikato and Wellington. She met Aupito William Sio,
Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister for
Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand, to discuss the
challenges for Pasifika; Te Taumata, MFAT’s Māori engagement
group, and the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee.
She also attended a memorial for the former Māori Queen, Dame Te
Atairangikaahu and visited several businesses in the Waikato,
promoting the recently signed UK-New Zealand Free Trade
Agreement.
Further Information
- The UK is helping Pacific nations and others to protect the
marine environment and reduce poverty through our £500m Blue
Planet Fund. This will directly support delivery of the region’s
2050 Strategy for the Blue
Pacific Continent.
- At COP 26, the UK announced £274 million for a new ‘Climate
Action for a Resilient Asia’ programme across the Indo-Pacific.
This will support up to 14 million people to adapt to global
warming.
- The UK also pledged £40 million to help Small Island
Developing States become more resilient, including in the Pacific
in November 2021.
- The UK and New Zealand are working with partners to ensure
those States can access climate finance, and that Pacific Island
voices are heard. This includes collaborating with Fiji to
address concerns raised through the Taskforce on Access to
Climate Finance.
