Reports show that the UN secretary-general, António Guterres, will be seeking assurances from the UK that there will be no reneging on climate promises.
This is after Rishi Sunak’s rowing back on green measures.
The UN says it is concerned that countries may be backsliding on pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions sharply, to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels.
Top UN officials called for countries to put aside geopolitical tensions in order to make progress on tackling the climate crisis at the crucial Cop28 climate summit in Dubai, which begins on 30 November.
In her reaction, Amina Mohammed, deputy secretary general, said that the UN was “absolutely” concerned about backsliding on climate commitments because “there is a lot of it”. Countries made pledges last year, at the Cop27 summit in Egypt, and at the landmark Cop26 summit in Glasgow in 2021, where the 1.5C limit was strongly affirmed.
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Reports show that many countries have since appeared to waver, through expanding fossil fuel access after the invasion of Ukraine, or by failing to set strong targets.
In the UK for instance, the prime minister has said that the legally binding target of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 still stands, but recent actions, such as postponing the phase-out of petrol driven cars and gas boilers, make it doubtful the UK will meet its emissions reduction commitments for 2030.
In the US, Joe Biden has licensed new oil and gas developments, despite taking a strong stance on the climate crisis. The EU has also recently failed to toughen its commitment to emissions reduction, currently set at a 55% cut by 2030 compared with 1990 levels, and China and India continue to invest in coal.
“Certainly, the secretary general will be leaning in to have those conversations with countries like the UK, the US, China, many [others]. It doesn’t stop,” Mohammed told the Guardian. “We have to keep them in the room [discussing climate action]. We need to get out of everyone the best of the ambition that is expected from us.”
Story was adapted from the Guardian.
