The Committee calls on the UK Government to set an example and provide international leadership to realign the focus of aid policy, strategy and funding, to place climate change at the centre. The negative consequences of a failure to act will be so serious as to nullify the effectiveness of wider aid spending.
The UK’s commitment of spending £1.76 billion on climate finance, dedicated aid spending for climate change related activities, should become the annual minimum. UK aid for fossil fuel projects should end, unless it demonstrably supports transition towards zero global emissions by 2050.
Inquiry
UK aid for combating climate change inquiry
Witnesses Professor Dirk Messner, Director of United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security; Rt Hon Claire Perry MP, Minister of State for Energy and Clean Growth, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Harriett Baldwin MP, Minister of State for Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Minister of State for International Development, Thérèse Coffey MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Sally Taylor, Head of Climate and Environment, Department for International Development (at 2.30pm).
Inquiry
UK aid for combating climate change inquiry
Witnesses Colin Buckley, Chief Operating Officer, CDC, and Joelle Jenny, Director of the Joint Funds Unit, National Security Secretariat; Dr Helena Wright, Senior Policy Adviser, E3G, Neil Bird, Senior Research Fellow, Overseas Development Institute, and Dr Angela Falconer, Associate Director, Climate Policy Initiative (at 10.30am).
Inquiry
UK aid for combating climate change inquiry
Witnesses Dr Saleemul Huq, Director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development, and Julie-Anne Richards, Independent Consultant; Dr Kate Schreckenberg, Kings College London, and Andrew Mitchell, Founder of Global Canopy (at 10.45am).
Department for International Development, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy & Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs
(CCC0037)