The world must move from aspiration to action
to limit rising global temperatures, Prime Minister will
tell leaders at COP26, as he commits to increase the UK’s own
climate finance by £1 billion by 2025 in Glasgow today (Monday 1
November).
In an address at the World Leaders
Summit Opening Ceremony, the Prime Minister will urge world
leaders to take concrete steps on phasing out coal,
accelerating the transition to electric
vehicles, and halting deforestation, as well as
supporting developing nations on the frontline of the
climate crisis with climate finance.
These actions will make the biggest difference
in reducing emissions this decade on the world’s path to net
zero and keeping alive the global aim of
limiting rising temperatures to 1.5C under the Paris
Agreement.
Leading by example, the UK
doubled its International Climate Finance commitment to
£11.6 billion over five years in 2019, and the Prime Minister’s
new announcement today would take this to a
world-leading £12.6 billion by 2025, if the economy grows as
forecast.
The UK’s International Climate Finance is
drawn from the overseas aid budget, which – as set out
in the Spending Review – is forecast to return to 0.7% of
GNI in 2024/25. The funding goes to
life-changing programmes around the world, shoring up
the defences of communities on the frontline of climate
change, protecting nature and biodiversity, and supporting the
global transition to clean and green
energy.
At tomorrow's Opening Ceremony, the
Prime Minister is expected to say:
“Humanity has long since run down the
clock on climate change.
“It’s one minute to midnight and we need
to act now.
“If we don’t get serious about climate
change today, it will be too late for our children to do so
tomorrow.
He is also expected to say:
“We have to move from talk and debate and
discussion to concerted, real-world action on coal, cars, cash
and trees.
“Not more hopes and targets and
aspirations, valuable though they are, but clear commitments and
concrete timetables for change.
“We need to get real about climate change
and the world needs to know when that’s going to
happen.”
Later today, the Prime Minister will bring
round one table some of the world’s biggest economies with
the countries most vulnerable to climate change to hear what is
at stake for countries if action is not taken now and set the
tone for two weeks of negotiations to
come.
The COP26 climate summit comes six years after
the Paris Agreement was signed by over 190 countries to limit
rising global temperatures to well below 2C with a view of
reaching 1.5C. According to the UN, global temperatures are
currently set to rise to 2.7C.
Scientists are clear that emissions
must halve by 2030 to keep the aims made in Paris within
reach.
Notes to editors
- The COP26 World Leaders Summit Opening Ceremony begins at
midday Monday 1 November.
-
In the last 10 years, UK aid has helped 88
million people adapt to climate change, installed 2,400
megawatts of renewable electricity supporting 41 million
people to access clean energy, and contributing to removing 51
million tonnes of carbon from the
atmosphere.
-
UK leadership against COP26 goals:
- First major economy to commit to net zero in law and
recently published our landmark Net Zero Strategy. The
Committee on Climate Change hailed our recent Net Zero Strategy
as a strong example to bring to COP26 of how to follow climate
change targets with action.
- One of the most ambitious targets to cut emissions by at
68% by 2030 (our Nationally Determined Contribution), which was
the highest reduction target made by a major economy.
- Committed to end coal power by 2024. We have made huge
progress, with coal accounting for only around 2% of the UK’s
electricity mix in 2020, compared with 40% almost decade ago.
We are also co-founders of the Powering Past Coal
alliance.
- Committed to ending the sale of new petrol and diesel cars
in the UK by 2030, which put the UK on course to be the fastest
G7 country to decarbonise cars and vans.
- Committed to £11.6 billion in international climate finance
over the next five years, with an extra £1bn by 2025 if the
economy grows as forecast.
- Committed to trebling tree planting rates by the end of
this Parliament (May 2024).
