Britain is going to COP30 to fight for our national interest and protect our way of life by working with other countries.
In the UK, we have put clean energy at the heart of our Government’s agenda, because it is the route to energy security, lower bills and good jobs for our country today. At COP30, we will be working with others to drive global action on the climate and nature crises to protect our home for future generations.
Communities are already paying the price of these crises—from wildfires in Scotland and flooding in Sussex to the devastation of Hurricane Melissa and repeated flooding in Brazil. Britain is just 1% of global emissions, which is why we must work with others to avoid disaster.
We are making progress as a world—and British leadership has made a difference. Before the Paris agreement, the world was on track for 4°C of warming. Now 2030 national commitments put us on course for 2.6°C, and 80% of global GDP is covered by net zero commitments. Globally, twice as much is invested in clean energy as fossil fuels. More is invested in solar each year than in all other power sources combined, and renewables have overtaken coal as the largest global electricity source.
We must go further and faster, but we must not overlook the progress made, or the role of British leadership in making it happen. From the world-leading Climate Change Act in 2008 to the success of COP26 in Glasgow to being the first major economy to legislate for net zero, Britain has helped change the course of global action. This leadership is more important than ever, because the world remains on a dangerous course, and we need to accelerate action. At COP30, Britain will be working with the Brazilian presidency and others to push for progress in five key areas:
1. Accelerating the global clean energy transition
Building on our clean energy mission at home, we will work with others abroad to drive progress towards the goal of tripling renewables and doubling energy efficiency improvement rates globally by 2030—including through the Global Clean Power Alliance. We will also drive forward progress in tackling super-pollutants such as methane, in order to deliver climate action and cleaner air. By speeding up the roll-out of clean energy internationally, we will unlock new investment and export opportunities for our country.
2. Driving ambition and accelerating implementation
The UK has led the way with an ambitious 2035 nationally determined contribution that is economy-wide, covers all greenhouses gases and is 1.5°C-aligned. It was announced by the Prime Minister at COP29 last year. We will continue to build on this to encourage others to act. We will call for COP30 to respond to the 2035 NDCs brought forward so far, and say how we will close the gap to keep 1.5°C within reach. To accelerate implementation, we will work with Brazil and others on reform of the global climate action agenda.
3. Protecting forests and nature
As countries gather for a COP in the Amazon, the UK will continue championing the commitment to halting and reversing forest loss by 2030, including through our role as co-chair of the Forest and Climate Leaders’ Partnership. We will support Brazil and other forest nations in scaling investment in forest-positive economies, including through high-integrity carbon markets. That will help Brazil to develop the tropical forest forever facility and support indigenous peoples and local communities.
4. Building global resilience to climate impacts
We will push for COP30 to finalise a robust and practical set of global indicators for measuring global progress on adaptation through the global goal on adaptation, and to accelerate the development and implementation of national adaptation plans.
5. Scaling up finance for the transition
Building on the Baku to Belém road map, we will work with others to chart a pathway towards the at least $1.3 trillion by 2035 called for at COP29. We will continue to push for reform of the financial system. We will harness the UK’s position as the green finance capital of the world to unlock investment in clean energy, nature and resilience.
We will continue to deploy our own international climate finance initiative to accelerate the transition and support others, and we will meet our commitment to provide £11.6 billion by April 2026 and to triple our spending on adaptation by 2025 from 2019 levels.
COP30 will be judged on whether the world can work together on the greatest long-term challenge we face. I will join the Prime Minister and the Prince of Wales at the world leaders summit in Belém, and lead the UK’s delegation during the negotiations, supported by the Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, my hon. Friend the Member for Leeds North West (Katie White), and the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry East (Mary Creagh). We will provide an update to the House once negotiations conclude.
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