THE Paris Agreement on climate change has been gutted and the prospects for developing countries look “dire”, according to an environmental charity, which has said wealthy countries are refusing to pay for the climate damage they have caused.
Friends of the Earth Scotland (FoES) said northern governments and corporation were pushing forward with carbon trading and the repression of peoples’ demands in Chile had been echoed by the aggressive silencing of civil society voices at the Madrid climate summit, which it said has been out of touch with reality.
FoES said the chances of keeping the planet at a liveable temperature for all are on a knife-edge with the carbon “budget” for 1.5 degrees almost exhausted.
Yet, it said, the rich countries which created the climate crisis in the first place, including Scotland, the UK and the EU are using loopholes to evade emissions cuts rather than keeping fossil fuels in the ground.
The FoES remarks came as the COP25 summit in Madrid drew to a close. Sara Shaw, climate justice and energy programme coordinator for FoE International, said: “Just as we thought the slow pace and weak ambition shown at the climate talks couldn’t get worse, along comes COP25.
“Here, we have witnessed the gutting of the already weak Paris Agreement, with the advance of dodgy carbon trading that will only exacerbate the climate crisis and harm southern communities.
“And we have seen a refusal by developed countries to pay up for loss and damage finance, while they try to introduce language that would remove their liability for the impacts their emissions have caused.”
COP26 will take place in Glasgow next year under the presidency of the UK government, and FoES head of campaigns, Mary Church, added: “The COP in Glasgow will be the fourth in a row to take place in the global north, putting additional barriers in the way of global south participation. In light of yesterday’s election results we anticipate the continuation of the racist ‘hostile environment’ UK border controls. The UN must put pressure on the new UK government to ensure the voices of those most affected by the climate crisis are not silenced or excluded at COP26.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here