Politics Column November 24
Readers may have failed to notice amongst all the news noise about the American election, but the climate summit COP29 has been taking place over the last fortnight.
Ahead of the conference, it set itself the goal of “deep, rapid and sustained emission reductions now to keep temperatures under control and stay below 1.5˚C, while leaving no one behind” and Greens called on our Prime Minister to show leadership on the world stage, by ensuring COP29 commits to:
- urgently transition away from fossil fuels
- provide the finance promised for adaptation and mitigation, and to fund the loss and damage many are already experiencing due to climate impacts.
The venue of Azerbaijan was already controversial because of the country’s strong economic reliance on oil and gas, and then the President told the conference that oil and gas were a “gift from God”. Now scientists, environmentalists and politicians are calling for a 7-point reform of the COP process to ensure actions match the policy which has been thrashed out over the previous 28 years.
We need to move urgently to a new phase of implementation, where COP becomes the forum to hold governments to account and push forward a change agenda, including supporting countries to adapt to the impacts of the crisis already being felt. We must exclude fossil fuel companies and lobbyists, strengthen the representation of developing world countries who are most impacted by climate change and focus on making change happen.
Prime Minister Starmer made a strong start by announcing an 81% cut in emissions by 2035. The setting of an interim goal is good – it avoids kicking the can down the road until it is too late.
But as well as clean energy we need moves on energy reduction – mass insulation and public transport investment. Labour in government has downgraded the retrofitting of homes, failed to make solar panels on new housing compulsory, and increased bus fares by 50%, scrapping its commitment to £28 billion for green growth, while promising to invest £22 billion in carbon capture and storage. Scientists and environmental campaigners say this is an unproven technology that risks prolonging our reliance on oil and gas, just what the fossil fuel companies want. Rachel Reeves may have promised to be the first green chancellor but the first green chancellor will still be a Green Chancellor.
This year we are almost certain now to breach the 1.5 degree rise in global temperature, which was promised as a target upper limit only 9 years ago. When readers see this column, we will still be waiting for the final agreement from COP 29. Will it deliver anything more than a climate jamboree, or will it have developed a process for measuring actions against promises, and bring real carbon reductions?
Cllr Jill Perry