Debate: UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, the UK
Date: WEDNESDAY, 20 OCTOBER 2021
Speaker: Bas Eickhout
Country: France
Language: EN

If you look at climate science and the latest IPCC report that was launched in August this summer, it is becoming more and more clear that the climate impacts are more severe and there are clearer reasons to limit global warming well below two degrees, as we said in the Paris Agreement. We have now very clearly said that we want to keep it below 1.5 degrees.  If you look at the current pledges on the table, we are not on track. What’s even worse is that, at this stage, if we look at all the national pledges around the world, emissions are still expected to rise by 2030. However, the IPCC and climate science is making very clear that by 2030, in order to keep 1.5 degrees within reach, we need a reduction of 45% by 2030 globally. Yet we are not on track if we look at the current pledges.  This is also why the Glasgow moment is so important for raising the ambition of all the different countries in the world. We are very much aware – and this is also described in the resolution – of the achievements and the changes that we have seen in the United States. However, we are, of course, also concerned about the developments in the United States in translating their promises into legislation, and there we see some issues as well, which are sure to be debated in Glasgow. But we are also very concerned about the other big player: China. Their pledges to reach carbon neutrality by 2060 and the peak of emissions by 2030 are insufficient if we look at what needs to happen. We will make that message also very clear.  We also expect stronger commitments from some of our partner countries. A country like Australia is certainly worth mentioning, because they have not yet come forward with climate neutrality targets despite all the other developed countries doing so.  Looking at Europe – and this is clearly in the resolution – we comment on the ‘Fit for 55’ and the package that is there upfront. However, we do realise that steps need to be taken within Europe to translate that into law. The proposals have been made by the Commission, but we as a House, and also the Member States, need to develop on that. Very importantly – and this is probably also an assignment for the European Commission – there is still a lack of mainstreaming of the Green Deal and climate policies into all the areas and fields. I would certainly also like to mention climate finance here.  In this regard, maybe it would sometimes be good to refer to the Paris Agreement, because quite often people talk about the Paris Agreement, but you sometimes wonder whether people have really read the Paris Agreement. Article 2, the backbone of the Paris Agreement, makes very clear that things need to happen on mitigation and adaptation, but the third element of Article 2 very clearly also obliges all the signatories of the Paris Agreement to make their financial flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development. So the third pillar of the Paris Agreement, besides mitigation, adaptation, is making the financial flows consistent with our low carbon pathways. Here is another assignment for Europe where action is still to be taken.  Looking at all the issues that are on the table, at the rulebook, we are happy that Europe is finally taking steps on the common five years’ timeframe. Indeed, it was probably about time to take steps there. But we also just want to stress once again that action need to be expected from aviation and maritime. Here too, it is very important to state that aviation and maritime do fall under the Paris Agreement. There was a decision that maybe two other UN bodies could handle this, but maritime and aviation do fall under the Paris commitments. Sometimes some people say that they’re not part of the Paris commitments. I think we need to make that point very clear. For the rest of the resolution, I think it’s very clear on innovation, on competitiveness. It also very much welcomes the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) as part of the ‘Fit for 55’ package, so that this entire package makes very clear that Europe can deliver on the promises it makes, so that we will ensure that in Glasgow we have a leading role. That’s probably our final point. Let this leading role also be seen on some of the sectoral agreements on coal phase-out, the end of the combustion engine. These are the kinds of discussions that are being done in Glasgow as well, and we expect Europe to be at the forefront of that debate.