Johnson pledges £3bn to climate change solutions

The Prime Minister has said that the UK will commit at least £3 billion to climate change solutions that protect and restore nature and biodiversity over five years.

The funding will be allocated from the UK’s existing commitment of £11.6 billion for international climate finance and will deliver transformational change in protecting biodiversity-rich land and ocean, shifting to sustainable food production and supply, and supporting the livelihoods of the world’s poorest.

According to the government, programmes supported by the funding will include the flagship Blue Planet Fund for marine conservation; projects to maintain forests and tackle the illegal timber trade and deforestation; and initiatives to conserve habitats such as mangroves that protect communities from the impacts of climate change.

The announcement is part of the One Planet Summit, a leader-level virtual event convened by France. Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed a session on Financing for Biodiversity, urging others to raise their level of ambition on funding for nature and to mobilise public and private finance for sustainable solutions to climate change. As part of this, the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, is expected to announce that the UK will pledge up to £38 million to the Climate Compatible Growth programme, supporting developing countries to accelerate their transition to green energy while growing their economies.

Ahead of the One Planet Summit, Johnson had said: “We will not achieve our goals on climate change, sustainable development or preventing pandemics if we fail to take care of the natural world that provides us with the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe.

“The UK is already leading the way in this area, committing to protect 30 percent of our land and ocean by the end of the decade and pledging at least £3 billion today to supporting nature and biodiversity. We must work together as a global community to drive the ambitious change and investment we need to protect our shared planet and the glorious, rich and diverse life within it.”