Attending French Presidents Emmanuel Macron’s One Planet Summit, UK Prime Minister Theresa May has vowed that her country will lead the way in phasing out coal while also committing £140 million of new funding to support the world’s poorest communities in addressing the effects of climate change.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May (right) with French President Emmanuel Macron (left)
Amidst a raft of announcements coming out of the One Planet Summit held in France on Tuesday, UK Prime Minister Theresa May announced several new measures that her country will take to tackle the effects and causes of climate change. Prime among them was the commitment of £140 million in new funding for the world’s poorest communities, which are disproportionately affected by climate change. The UK has already committed to these communities, which means this new boost to funding will increase the number of people the UK is helping to 7 million. Some of the work that is expected to be funded is irrigation for better harvests, support in planting more resilient crops, improved forecasting, and help in developing insurance schemes.
The UK also announced an additional £30 million through DFID’s Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED) program, another £15 million for reconstruction on the island of Dominica in the Caribbean, £8 million of additional funding to help other individual countries and territories in the Caribbean, and a further £87 million through DFID’s Forest Governance, Markets and Climate (FGMC) Programme.
“Tackling climate change and mitigating its effects for the world’s poorest are among the most critical challenges that we face,” explained Prime Minister Theresa May. “That is why I am joining other world leaders in Paris today for the One Planet Summit and committing to stand firmly with those on the front line of extreme weather and rising sea levels. And by redoubling our efforts to phase out coal, as well as build on our world leading electric car production, we are showing we can cut emissions in a way that supports economic growth.”
Theresa May also vowed to ensure that the UK leads the way on phasing out coal. Specifically, as is addressed more in full here, the UK, alongside Canada, is driving the Powering Past Coal Alliance which is supporting the international community and big business in phasing out coal. Since the Alliance was launched at COP23 last month, nearly 30 countries and regions have signed up, and Tuesday saw new partners joining including Sweden, California, and large businesses such as EDF and Unilever.
Finally, the UK will host a global Zero Emission Vehicle Summit next autumn which will bring together Ministers, industry leaders, and sector representatives from around the world to further and support the development of low-emission and electric vehicles.
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