HANSARDCommons17 Oct 20231 contribution

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

International Climate Finance

The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Mr Andrew Mitchell)
ConservativeSutton Coldfield
I would like to update the House on our progress towards meeting the UK’s commitment to spend £11.6 billion of International Climate Finance (ICF) between financial years 2021/22 and 2025/26.
The UK has long looked to lead on climate action. We were the first major economy to legislate for net zero and we remain committed to this goal. During our COP26 presidency we worked with all parties to deliver the Glasgow climate pact and keep 1.5 degrees within reach. In March this year, we published our 2030 strategic framework which set out how we will drive forward international action on climate and nature, working to keep 1.5 alive by halving global emissions, building resilience to current and future climate impacts and halting and reversing biodiversity loss. We also published our ICF strategy, underpinning our commitment to spending £11.6 billion ICF by March 2026.
Development and tackling climate change and nature loss are intertwined challenges. Since 2011/12, the UK has committed to spending a significant proportion of its aid budget on ICF to help developing countries address both the causes and impacts of climate change. This spending comes from four Government Departments: the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. The table below sets out total UK ICF spend by financial year since 2011/12. UK ICF spend by calendar year can be found as reported to the United Nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) under the biennial reports, currently covering 2011-2020.
Financial year
UK ICF spend (£million)
2011/12
403
2012/13
566
2013/14
772
2014/15
910
2015/16
1,188
ICF ‘1’ (2011/12 to 2015/16)
Total: £3,840 million
2016/17
1,119
2017/18
965
2018/19
1,174
2019/20
1,161
2020/21
1,560
ICF ‘2’ (2015/16 to 2020/21)
Total: £5,980 million
The £11.6 billion ICF commitment covers financial years 2021/22 to 2025/26 and represents a significant part of the UK’s contribution to the global target of providing $100 billion in climate finance annually to developing countries. The table below sets out how we expect to meet our target, showing spend in 2021/22 and 2022/23 and an expected range for UK ICF spending for 2023/24 to 2025/26 with the scale-up reflecting both the increasing importance of tackling climate change and the growth in our economy.
Financial year
UK ICF spendand forecast spend (£ million)
2021/22
1,648
2022/23
1,629
2023/24
1,800-2,100
2024/25
2,500-2,800
2025/26
3,400-3,800
ICF ‘3’ (2021/22 to 2025/26)
Total: 11,600 million

International Climate Finance

The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Mr Andrew Mitchell)

I would like to update the House on our progress towards meeting the UK’s commitment to spend £11.6 billion of International Climate Finance (ICF) between financial years 2021/22 and 2025/26.

The UK has long looked to lead on climate action. We were the first major economy to legislate for net zero and we remain committed to this goal. During our COP26 presidency we worked with all parties to deliver the Glasgow climate pact and keep 1.5 degrees within reach. In March this year, we published our 2030 strategic framework which set out how we will drive forward international action on climate and nature, working to keep 1.5 alive by halving global emissions, building resilience to current and future climate impacts and halting and reversing biodiversity loss. We also published our ICF strategy, underpinning our commitment to spending £11.6 billion ICF by March 2026.

Development and tackling climate change and nature loss are intertwined challenges. Since 2011/12, the UK has committed to spending a significant proportion of its aid budget on ICF to help developing countries address both the causes and impacts of climate change. This spending comes from four Government Departments: the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs, and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. The table below sets out total UK ICF spend by financial year since 2011/12. UK ICF spend by calendar year can be found as reported to the United Nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) under the biennial reports, currently covering 2011-2020.

Financial year

UK ICF spend (£million)

2011/12

403

2012/13

566

2013/14

772

2014/15

910

2015/16

1,188

ICF ‘1’ (2011/12 to 2015/16)

Total: £3,840 million

2016/17

1,119

2017/18

965

2018/19

1,174

2019/20

1,161

2020/21

1,560

ICF ‘2’ (2015/16 to 2020/21)

Total: £5,980 million

The £11.6 billion ICF commitment covers financial years 2021/22 to 2025/26 and represents a significant part of the UK’s contribution to the global target of providing $100 billion in climate finance annually to developing countries. The table below sets out how we expect to meet our target, showing spend in 2021/22 and 2022/23 and an expected range for UK ICF spending for 2023/24 to 2025/26 with the scale-up reflecting both the increasing importance of tackling climate change and the growth in our economy.

Financial year

UK ICF spendand forecast spend (£ million)

2021/22

1,648

2022/23

1,629

2023/24

1,800-2,100

2024/25

2,500-2,800

2025/26

3,400-3,800

ICF ‘3’ (2021/22 to 2025/26)

Total: 11,600 million