UK commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions must be ‘starting point, not finish line’, climate advisers say
More reaction has been rolling in on the UK’s new commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions, which were trailed to my colleague, Fiona Harvey, last night, and then finally delivered by Keir Starmer, the prime minister, in a statement in Baku this afternoon.
Shruti Agarwal, senior adviser on climate change and sustainable economies at Save the Children, said:
The UK government’s commitment to an 81% emissions reduction by 2035 is an encouraging step. But let this be the starting point, not the finish line, in the UK’s ambition to protect children who continue to bear the brunt of the climate crisis
COP29 is an opportunity to build on this global leadership with further meaningful action on climate both in the UK and around the world.
It’s time we stand with children and put their voices at the heart of every aspect of climate change decision-making and financing.
As COP29 progresses we hope to see the UK drive forward discussions for a new international climate finance goal and action in the UK ensuring a fair, just transition for all.
Friederike Roder, vice president of global policy and advocacy, Global Citizen, said:
The UK’s ambitious new NDC sends a powerful message that climate action is unstoppable, and that climate leadership can and will be found across the world
The UK’s decision to listen to climate scientists, and to citizens, and reduce emissions by 81% will cement its position as a global leader in climate action. The decision to do so early – at this critical moment – is equally important in building momentum and setting an example for others to follow.
Like all commitments at COP, the proof will be in the delivery. But by setting early goals and outlining ambitious targets, the UK is showing much needed leadership at this important moment. We hope this leads to all nations setting ambitious, high action NDCs that keep the world on track for 1.5 degrees, and encourages those here at COP29 to deliver an NCQG which provides the vital finance to achieve these goals.
But the UK’s job isn’t done: so far, it has not made any new commitments on international public finance for climate. The poorest countries in the world urgently need additional support to fund their NDCs, ensure a just energy transition and withstand natural disasters. The UK could also show leadership in mobilising new sources of finances by joining the Task Force on Global Solidarity Levies.
Frans Berkhout, professor of environment, society and climate at King’s College London, said:
The Prime Minister’s announcement on UK climate action at COP29 in Baku is highly significant. The 81% emissions reduction target for 2035 is tougher than the existing target.
Mr Starmer aims to recapture the UK’s leadership position on climate precisely at a moment of peril for climate policy following Donald Trump’s election. It commits the UK to more rapid investments in renewables and to tackling the really hard parts of the pathway to net-zero – transport, buildings and food.
As Starmer says, these represent huge opportunities, but delivery will be complex and is high-stakes politically.
Key events
Dharna Noor
US president Joe Biden’s climate policy was designed to outlast his administration, the White House’s top climate adviser said at Cop29 on Tuesday, writes Dharna Noor, fossil fuels and climate reporter for the Guardian US.
“The way we built climate action in the United States was akin to the public sector coming in with booster packs on a private sector rocket,” Ali Zaidi told reporters.
The Biden administration’s landmark policy, the Inflation Reduction Act, provided billions of dollars in tax credits, loans, and other incentives for the private sector to increase its green spending. But the recently re-elected former president Donald Trump has vowed to claw back the policies “unspent” funds, sparking alarm from the climate movement.
“What we will see is whether we’ve achieved escape velocity or not and how quickly the booster packs are about to fall off,” Zaidi said.
Despite his record incentives for carbon-free energy and green technology, under the Biden administration, oil and gas production soared to record levels. When asked about the uptick, Zaidi deflected.
“The US has in the last four years has doubled its decarbonization pace from below 20% to above 40% in 2030, relative to 2005 levels,” he said. “If every country did that and did it again in the next five to 10 years, we would be headed where we need to head.”
Asked about the lame duck administration’s ability to influence climate finance negotiations at the international climate talks in Baku, Zaidi asked reporters to “keep in mind that we’re talking about a climate finance goal for 2035.”
Despite his optimism, Zaidi said he did not “mean to sugarcoat the result of the election.”
“Leadership matters and there’s no talking around that,” he said.
Large parts of Greenland and west Antarctica will melt if the world exceeds 1.5C of global heating, a report released this morning by the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative has warned.
This will lead to more than 10 metres of sea level rise even if temperatures later fall, which will have catastrophic effects for the billions of people living at low elevations. About three-quarters of large cities sit less than 10 metres below sea level, and many metropolises including Shanghai, Bangkok, Manila, Miami, Osaka, Alexandria and Rio de Janeiro will be severely affected.
The report also finds that high mountain glaciers in Asia are expected to lose about half their ice, increasing the risk of disastrous floods from glacial lakes and irreparably affecting the water cycle downstream, where many communities rely on water that originates in these areas.
It also warns that emissions from melting permafrost are likely to reach a tipping point and create a cycle of emissions that will not be able to be stopped for one to two centuries, meaning enormous levels of carbon will have to be removed from the atmosphere by future generations in order just to stand still, let alone make progress.
UK commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions must be ‘starting point, not finish line’, climate advisers say
More reaction has been rolling in on the UK’s new commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions, which were trailed to my colleague, Fiona Harvey, last night, and then finally delivered by Keir Starmer, the prime minister, in a statement in Baku this afternoon.
Shruti Agarwal, senior adviser on climate change and sustainable economies at Save the Children, said:
The UK government’s commitment to an 81% emissions reduction by 2035 is an encouraging step. But let this be the starting point, not the finish line, in the UK’s ambition to protect children who continue to bear the brunt of the climate crisis
COP29 is an opportunity to build on this global leadership with further meaningful action on climate both in the UK and around the world.
It’s time we stand with children and put their voices at the heart of every aspect of climate change decision-making and financing.
As COP29 progresses we hope to see the UK drive forward discussions for a new international climate finance goal and action in the UK ensuring a fair, just transition for all.
Friederike Roder, vice president of global policy and advocacy, Global Citizen, said:
The UK’s ambitious new NDC sends a powerful message that climate action is unstoppable, and that climate leadership can and will be found across the world
The UK’s decision to listen to climate scientists, and to citizens, and reduce emissions by 81% will cement its position as a global leader in climate action. The decision to do so early – at this critical moment – is equally important in building momentum and setting an example for others to follow.
Like all commitments at COP, the proof will be in the delivery. But by setting early goals and outlining ambitious targets, the UK is showing much needed leadership at this important moment. We hope this leads to all nations setting ambitious, high action NDCs that keep the world on track for 1.5 degrees, and encourages those here at COP29 to deliver an NCQG which provides the vital finance to achieve these goals.
But the UK’s job isn’t done: so far, it has not made any new commitments on international public finance for climate. The poorest countries in the world urgently need additional support to fund their NDCs, ensure a just energy transition and withstand natural disasters. The UK could also show leadership in mobilising new sources of finances by joining the Task Force on Global Solidarity Levies.
Frans Berkhout, professor of environment, society and climate at King’s College London, said:
The Prime Minister’s announcement on UK climate action at COP29 in Baku is highly significant. The 81% emissions reduction target for 2035 is tougher than the existing target.
Mr Starmer aims to recapture the UK’s leadership position on climate precisely at a moment of peril for climate policy following Donald Trump’s election. It commits the UK to more rapid investments in renewables and to tackling the really hard parts of the pathway to net-zero – transport, buildings and food.
As Starmer says, these represent huge opportunities, but delivery will be complex and is high-stakes politically.
Canada tells methane emitters ‘you can run but you can’t hide’ as satellite monitoring tracks culprits
Damian Carrington
“You can run but you can’t hide,” is the warning Steven Guilbeault, Canada’s minister of environment and climate change, gave to methane emitters at the Cop29 summit on Tuesday, writes Damian Carrington, environment editor.
Satellite monitoring now enables leaks to be spotted from space and UN and other initiatives are now identifying culprits and demanding action. Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas, 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over 20 years, and causes about a third of global heating.
The good news is that, unlike CO2, methane breaks down in the atmosphere quickly and therefore cuts rapidly slow warming. Fossil fuel exploitation causes a lot of leaks, but these are often cheap to fix. Former UN climate chief Patricia Espionosa told delegates that cutting methane is “essential” to taming the climate crisis.
US special climate envoy John Podesta announced the implementation of fines for large methane leakers. A major leak in Texas in 2022 released 147 tonnes an hour, for example, will cost the operator $220,000 per hour from 2026, which should get their attention.
Cop29 president Muktar Bubayev said methane emissions were still going “in the wrong direction” and that this year’s focus was on the methane pouring from waste dumps as food rots. The Guardian revealed in February more than 1200 huge methane leaks from dumps. China’s special envoy, Liu Zhenmin, said it was working to cut emissions from coal mines by two-thirds.
The World Bank has also targeted methane reductions and president Ajay Banga highlighted projects in dozens of countries. Methane emissions from cattle were being reduced with better breed and feeds, as well as manure management, in China and Brazil, he said, and emissions from rice growing were being cut with more frugal irrigation in India and Bangladesh. Leaks from oil and gas pipelines were also being tackled in Iraq and Bangladesh, both major emitters.
The UK’s Ed Miliband summarised the action being taken on different greenhouse gases by saying: “CO2 is the marathon, methane is the sprint.”
Ajit Niranjan
The crown prince of Jordan, Al Hussein bin Abdullah II, criticised the Israel-Gaza war as well as stressing the climate threats to his country, one of several world leaders at Cop29 to address both issues together, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
“How can we work together for our shared future when some are deemed unworthy of life?” he asked, criticising the international community for standing by as Palestinians have been killed.
He added that war compounds environmental threats, particularly for refugees, who make up an estimated 1 in 3 people in Jordan.
“Our inability to collectively do what is right is turning us into passive observers,” he said. “No-one is a bystander in the fight for life on earth. That means fighting for climate change, fighting for peace and fighting to alleviate human suffering together. Because every life is worth fighting for.”
Starmer unveils ambitious new UK emissions commitment
The UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, has told delegates at Cop29 that the UK will set an ambitious new target to slash carbon emissions by 81%, as he pledged the country would stand alongside countries “on the front line of the climate crisis”.
The announcement made the UK one of the first countries to announce an official UN carbon cutting plan — officially known as a nationally determined contribution. The blueprints are not due until February next year.
Starmer said: “Today I can confirm, three months ahead of the deadline, the UK’s 2035 international target, our nationally determined contribution, to reduce all greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% on 1990 levels.
“And we urge all parties to come forward with ambitious targets of their own, as we all agreed at the last Cop.”
After listing some of the green energy policies already pledged or enacted since his coming to power this summer, Starmer promised the UK would support other countries in making a transition to cleaner energy sources.
A new capital market mechanism was launching today on the London Stock Exchange, exploiting the UK’s power as a financial centre to finance the green transition.
“Climate action is at the heart of this government’s mission for the protection and prosperity of Britain and the world, writ large across our domestic and international priorities,” he said.
“We are taking the action needed to protect our planet and its people.”
Ajit Niranjan
Alexander De Croo, prime minister of Belgium, has spelled out in simple words the state of progress and the task ahead, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
“This is not a time to falter. Emissions continue to rise and we see more and more destructive climate disasters,” he said. “If we do not alter our policies, we will see an increase of 3C by the end of the century.
He added: “Meetings like these are often perceived as talking shops. And yes, these strenuous negotiations are far from perfect. But if you compare climate policy now to a decade ago, we are in a different world.”
De Croo also pointed to two overlooked aspects of the energy transition – simply using less, and building vital but overlooked infrastructure.
“The safest, cheapest and cleanest energy is the one we don’t use,” said de Croo. “We must do more on energy efficiency, it’s a win-win.”
He added that the development of electricity grids and storage capacity had failed to keep pace with the rise in renewables.
Mia Mottley: “Humanity and the planet are hurtling towards catastrophe”
Mia Mottley, prime minister of Barbados, said in her speech that the world must take radical action on raising the money needed to fund climate adaptation.
She said: “We are in a season of superlatives and the reality is that these extreme weather events that the world is facing daily suggest that humanity and the planet are hurtling towards catastrophe.
“The extreme weather requires from us a serious commitment at this Cop with respect to new collective quantified goals that enable us to reverse the current trajectory and to fund mitigation, adaptation and, of course, loss and damage.”
Mottley is a legendary figure at UN climate talks. For years, she has spearheaded a push to transform how global financial institutions handle climate funding. The mission has borne fruit, the Guardian’s Fiona Harvey wrote this week, since the new World Bank president recently promised to take a more active role in climate finance.
But in her speech, Mottley criticised a lack of funding for loss of damage, pointing out the fund has attracted pledges of only $700m so far: “And this is despite the numerous crises besetting small island developing states. And, indeed, in our own region, Hurricane Beryl, which has caused serious damage to countries, from housing to public infrastructure.”
Under Mottley’s leadership, Barbados removed the British queen as head of state, become a fully fledged republic.
Ajit Niranjan
The president of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, said he was coming with a “terrible truth” in a fast-paced speech that took aim at climate deniers and laggards on cutting pollution, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
“We need drastic measures,” he said. “We need to transform.”
Late last month, catastrophic floods hit southern and eastern Spain killed 220 people, after rains that would have been weaker and less likely had people not heated the planet with fossil fuel pollution. Sánchez has announced €10bn in aid to help rebuild the disaster zone.
“This societal threat is obvious to everyone,” said Sánchez. “But at this crucial time for humanity, we are seeing governments hesitate and slow down when they should be accelerating. Some are even denying evidence and turning back.”
Just a quick reminder for readers that if you want to watch the Cop29 leaders’ speeches for yourself, you can click on the image at the top of the blog.
Ajit Niranjan
Ahmed Abdullah Afif Didi, vice president of Seychelles, has called on rich countries to move beyond pledges and decide on mechanisms to release funds promised at previous Cops, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
He said the Seychelles – an island nation with a land area as small as the German city of Munich but a marine area the size of France and Turkey – is punching above its weight but having to pay for the costs of rising sea levels.
“Everything is being threatened,” he said. “We have to relocate our houses.”
He asked where the country was expected to get the money to pay for it.
“Just like the gong went now,” Didi said as an automated buzzer marked the end of his speaking slot, “if this could have been done – if every time it made a boom we released a million dollars – then I think this afternoon Seychelles would have all the money it needed to restore a lot of its damaged environment.”
Damian Carrington
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev told Cop29 earlier today that fossil fuels are a “gift of God”. Rev Fletcher Harper, of GreenFaith, disgrees:
More fossil fuels today are literally the highway to hell for billions of people and the planet, certainly not a gift from God. Renewables for all would be today’s sacred gift.
Ajit Niranjan
Brazil’s vice president, Geraldo Alckmin, has pointed to the start of the climate conventions in Rio in 1992 that have led to delegates sitting in Baku in 2024, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
“Each step along this path represents both progress and hesitations of multilateralism in the task of achieving common environmental goals and our ability to rise to the challenge,” he said.
He said Brazil is recognised as an “environmental powerhouse” and described it as a leader in food security with green and efficient agriculture.
The Amazon rainforest, most of which lies in Brazil, is being destroyed by loggers, miners, farmers and ranchers, many of whom were emboldened to chop and burn trees under former president Jair Bolsonaro.
Earlier this year, my Amazon-based colleague Jon Watts wrote powerfully about how optimism for the new president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is drying up.
Earlier we reported the powerful speech of Hilda Heine, president of the Marshall Islands, a low-lying island state facing severe threats from the rising waters caused by climate breakdown.
She is one of only eight women leaders representing their countries at Cop29 – nine tomorrow when Giorgia Meloni of Italy is due to arrive. Observers have raised eyebrows at the lack of gender equality at the summit.
“Once again, women are being silenced and cut out of critical negotiations around the climate catastrophe and the future of our planet,” said Helen Pankhurst, senior advisor on gender equality at CARE International UK. She added:
Women and girls are contributing the least to the climate crisis, yet world-over they are paying the highest price. If we want to see a fair outcome from climate negotiations, which make a genuine difference, we’ve got to start seeing women represented equally at the very highest levels.
We are currently hearing from Philip Isdor Mpango, vice president of Tanzania. It is not clear why Samia Suluhu Hassan, the country’s president, is not representing Tanzania.
Ajit Niranjan
The president of Sudan, First Lt. General Abdel-Fattah AlBurhan Abdelrahman Al-Burhan, has joined several leaders in criticising the effects of war, calling his opponents a threat to the country along with climate change, writes Ajit Niranjan, Europe environment correspondent.
Sudan is in the grip of what the UN has described as “one of the worst humanitarian nightmares in recent history”, after a civil war broke out in April and both sides were accused of war crimes. It has contributed almost nothing to heating the planet but is one of the most vulnerable to extreme weather made worse by climate change.
“Climate change is a key priority for Sudan, because it is vital for its national development,” said Al-Burhan.
Damian Carrington
“Climate change is not just changing the planet, it is changing children,” Abheet Solomon from Unicef told Cop29 on Tuesday, writes Damian Carrington, environment editor. He said children – the future of humanity – are disproportionately affected due to their fast-growing bodies.
“The biggest risks to children come from extreme heat, from droughts and storms, from wildfires, from air pollution,” he said. “These hazards are linked to pregnancy complications, adverse birth outcomes, child malnutrition, killer infectious diseases like malaria, other diseases like asthma and depression, impacts on brain development and mental health.”
“I give this litany because it is important to emphasise that we are already seeing the impacts on children’s health,” Solomon said. “The purpose of climate action is to protect humanity’s future, its children, and therefore we are failing children if we do not keep the 1.5C promise.”
Everyone’s health is affected by the climate crisis, said Dr Maria Neira, from the World Health Organisation: “We say health is the argument for climate action. The WHO community is here to make sure that all the negotiators are aware that when they are negotiating emissions, they are negotiating with our health.”
“Climate change is making us sick, as simple as that,” she said. “This diagnosis is clearly based on science.” She said air pollution from burning fossil fuels kills 7 million people a year, while the climate crisis also harms people via heatwaves and other extreme weather, increasing the transmission of deadly infectious diseases, displacing people and impacting their mental health, and as well as making the production of healthy food harder.
“But if we [fight] climate change, the health benefits that we will unlock can be enormous” Neira, said. She highlighted sustainable travel, such as cycling and walking: “If we reduce sedentary lifestyles, we reduce all the associated diseases associated with this lack of an active life.”
A special report on climate change and health produced for Cop29 found that just five climate-related actions could save 2m lives a year. The most impactful action would be phasing out hundreds of billions of dollars of fossil fuel subsidies and taxing fossil fuels, saving 1.2m lives a year.
The other actions are heatwave warning systems, phasing out fossil fuel use in primary healthcare facilities and in homes, and protecting clean water and sanitation from climate damage.