PM: It’s touch and go whether climate talks are a success

The Prime Minister admitted yesterday that the Cop26 climate conference could end in failure as it emerged that the world has failed to meet a key funding deadline.

Boris Johnson warned that it was ‘touch and go’ whether key goals would be met at the UN summit to tackle global warming.

The PM told a children’s press conference: ‘We need as many people as possible to go to net zero so that they are not producing too much carbon dioxide by the middle of the century.

‘Now, I think it can be done. It’s going to be very, very tough, this summit. And I’m very worried, because it might go wrong and we might not get the agreements that we need. It’s touch and go.’

Mr Johnson said ‘peer pressure’ at the UN summit could force some nations into action.

however, with some major world

leaders, including China’s Xi Jinping, expected to stay away, the chances of that tactic being a success may be limited.

Mr Johnson acknowledged ‘it’s very, very far from clear that we will get the progress that we need’ although he praised Australia for the ‘heroic’ decision to commit to net zero by 2050.

Downing Street has said the Prime Minister was setting out the ‘realistic situation’ when he presented a downbeat assessment of his chances of success at Cop26.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: ‘We have made some progress with a number of countries. But the Prime Minister was simply setting out the realistic situation that bringing together countries from around the world to sign up to ambitious targets such as these, that require tangible commitments, is difficult and challenging and will require some intense negotiation.’

Mr Johnson also spoke to President Vladimir Putin for the first time since the Russian leader

‘I’m very worried’

said that he would not attend the summit. And he welcomed a Russian decision to commit to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2060.

‘The Prime Minister expressed his hope that Russia will raise that target to achieving net zero by 2050 as well as making further progress on ending deforestation and an ambitious nationally determined contribution,’ Downing Street said. Meanwhile, Cop26 president Alok Sharma conceded that a pledge to fund climate measures will not be met by its deadline. He said that it was a source of ‘deep frustration’ for developing countries.

Wealthy nations – who tend to have the highest historical emissions – pledged to support climate change measures in poor nations, which have historically low emissions and can also be the most vulnerable to climate change. They vowed in 2009 to deliver $100billion a year for five years, starting in 2020.

But a plan on how to do so, prepared by Canada and Germany ahead of the summit, said the annual target would now not be met until 2023.

Mr Sharma told a news conference: ‘The aim of putting this plan together has been to rebuild trust... countries will need to deliver on this.’ Sources said richer nations would now attempt to make up the shortfall, and said Covid had delayed pledges from nations.