Andy Burnham has been criticised for taking inadequate climate action following his speech at an international summit on the environment.
The prime minister was the only leader from the G7 to attend the United Nations’ 31st Conference of the Parties (COP31) this year in Turkey, but that did not mean campaigners were happy with his speech.
Frustrated groups complained he had only offered up a “veneer of climate action” and warned “questions piling in about his climate credibility are more than justified”.
The prime minister used his platform this morning to announce the former head of the joint intelligence committee, Dame Madeleine Alessandri, would be taking on a new job as the UK’s special representative for climate security.
She is set to strengthen the country’s international partnerships on climate security while making sure climate and nature risks are part of Britain’s security policies.
Burnham also acknowledge the depth of the problem the world faces with the erosion of our environment during his address.
He said: “We should all recognise the summer was not normal. The climate crisis is upon all of us now. We saw that with the wildfires that devastated lives and livelihoods everywhere.”
The PM said Britain is still determined to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and work with international partners to “build a clean energy future”.
“The world has changed. The consensus we once enjoyed on science and climate action has broken down,” Burnham said. “We will not stand by and that’s why I’ve pledged a new era of British leadership over the next decade.”
Burnham is also set to offer up £400 million as a loan investment to support for the Tropical Forests Forever Facility to help Brazil reach its $10 billion goal.
It comes after Keir Starmer opted out of the flagship fund to protect the Amazon last year at COP30.
The UK will support the pledge for electricity to supply 35% of global energy by 2035, too – though cabinet ministers are simultaneously discussing whether the UK should water down zero-emission vehicle mandate.
It has been reported that Burnham’s deputy, Louise Haigh, will announce within days that the government is cutting its electric vehicle targets by around a quarter.
Greenpeace’s senior climate campaigner Nina Navid said the timing was “self-sabotage”, and warned Britons will “keep paying many times more per mile for staying hooked to fossil fuels”.
Friends of the Earth chief executive Asad Rehman, also tore into the PM for making climate commitments while mulling over plans to develop Rosebank oil field.
He said: “Another year of UN climate talks, another set of announcements that give the veneer of climate action, but distract from what the UK really needs to bring to the table: a major commitment on grant-based climate finance, and the reassurance the UK will deliver on its climate goals.”
He also said: “The prime minister’s first climate talks should be an opportunity to demonstrate he means business.
“But if this is all the UK has to offer, then the questions piling in about his climate credibility are more than justified.
“Committing to real, grant-based climate finance, rejecting the Rosebank oil field and saying no to a third runway at Heathrow are just some of the ways he can put the UK on track.”
Amayaa Wijesinghe, senior resilience and climate adviser at ActionAid UK, said: “The prime minister’s speech offered some encouraging signals, particularly on using G20 leadership to accelerate climate action, but fell short of providing real hope.
“It matters that he showed up at COP31 when most other G7 leaders stayed away, but climate leadership demands more than turning up.
“Warm words on electrification and private investment won’t protect the rights of women and girls bearing the greatest burden of a crisis they did little to create.”
She added: “With UK climate finance falling short, the prime minister must now restore public funding and use the UK’s G20 presidency to put climate justice at the heart of global action.
“Real leadership means putting those paying the highest price for the climate crisis first.”
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