1 week Ago By Alfie Stone
Make Britain a climate leader to counter Trump, over 50 NGOs tell Keir Starmer 9 November 2024, London – Over 50 leading climate, development and anti-poverty organisations have written to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calling on him to ‘stay strong and not waver’ in delivering his ‘mandate for climate leadership’ at COP29, following the shock re-election of Donald Trump in the United States. The letter, signed by dozens of NGOs including Greenpeace UK, Oxfam GB, Friends of the Earth and Christian Aid and representing over 2.5 million members and supporters, states that ‘our planet cannot afford for Trump’s election to derail international climate action’.
It also points to the series of hurricanes, storms and floods that have killed hundreds, displaced millions and caused hundreds of billions of dollars of damage around the world in recent weeks. The news comes as several G7 leaders, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron, as well as EU President Ursula von der Leyen, have confirmed they will not be attending COP29 , which begins in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku on Monday. Trump, who has described climate change as a ‘hoax’, has promised to slash environmental regulations and clean energy investments and take a ‘drill, baby, drill’ approach to new oil and gas projects.
While he will not take office till January, signatories warn ‘his pro-oil, anti-climate stance could immediately influence the COP29 negotiations’ and embolden fossil fuel lobbyists, thousands of whom are expected to attend. Trump has also pledged to take the US out of the Paris Agreement at a moment when ‘international cooperation is needed more than ever’ to limit global warming and deliver funding to lower-income countries facing growing climate impacts. The letter emphasises the injustice of the Trump-supporting fossil fuel industry banking billions in profit while many climate-vulnerable countries face mounting public debt crises, underscoring the need to vastly build up new and additional, grants-based finance.
COP29 has been dubbed the ‘finance COP’ for its focus on scaling up climate finance to meet the rapidly escalating cost of climate change. Signatories stress that climate action is ‘hugely popular’ with a recent poll finding that four-fifths of Britons (79%) think it is important for the government to tackle climate change. Two-thirds (67 per cent) think that those who’ve contributed most to climate change globally should foot the bill.
They call on Keir Starmer to use Cop29 to [1]: Restore the UK’s reputation on the world stage as a leader on cutting emissions, including by enacting his manifesto pledge to end new oil and gas and encouraging other states to do the same; Rebuild trust with the Global South by backing grant-based public finance and debt relief for countries facing climate damages; and Ensure that ‘those with the broadest shoulders bear the heavier burden’ of climate action by championing bold new taxes on the fossil fuel industry and other polluting companies to raise funds for climate-impacted communities at home and abroad. Areeba Hamid, Co-Executive Director at Greenpeace UK, said: “Donald Trump’s re-election is a gift to the big polluters seeking to derail climate action at COP29, but the world cannot afford further delays. From the devastation in Valencia to the typhoon-battered towns of the Philippines, the disasters of recent weeks are a stark warning of the costs of failure.
“People around the world are crying out for climate action and as the US steps back, others must step up. With some G7 leaders wavering on even attending COP, Keir Starmer has a chance to lead the way in Baku. He should stand firm and deliver on his election mandate through joining the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, increasing grant-based public finance for developing countries, and championing polluter taxes to support communities at home and abroad facing escalating climate impacts.
” Rosie Downes, head of campaigns at Friends of the Earth, said: “There’s never been a more critical time for the UK to take up the mantle of global climate leadership and rebuilding our green reputation by daring to blaze the trail for ambitious climate action. In the past, the UK has played a vital role in influencing other nations to recognise the scale of the challenges we face – we were the first country to introduce a Climate Change Act, with scores more following soon after. What we do on the world stage matters.
“There’s no doubt Trump’s return to the White House is a huge blow for anyone who cares about our collective future, not to mention those most exposed to the extreme impacts of climate breakdown. But we simply can’t allow this new reality to derail global progress on protecting the health of our planet. “Extreme weather is escalating the world over, including here in the UK.
The government must use the UN climate talks to show it’s back in business on climate, and to galvanise the international community at this most urgent time for people and our planet.”.
