BORIS Johnson has pledged to end investment and promotion of dirty fossil fuels overseas as he vowed to make battling climate change his “number one international priority”.
The PM committed to ditching taxpayer support for polluting fossil fuel as quickly as possible as part of his green goals.
Ministers hope to ditch the cash before Britain hosts the influential COP26 climate summit in November.
In the last four years, the government supported £21 billion of UK oil and gas exports through trade promotion and export finance.
But oil and gas will remain an “important part” of the UK’s energy strategy while the country transitions to cleaner resources.
A consultation is expected to be launched in the coming weeks into how this will end, the PM’s Integrated Review revealed.
And last night he confirmed that this year and beyond, the Government “will make tackling climate change and biodiversity loss its number one international priority” above everything else.
Britain aims to be the “world’s leading centre for green technology, finance and wind energy” and support a huge 250,000 jobs in future.
The PM vowed to push forward with “an unprecedented programme of new investment” with funding for research and development in green tech, and helping the developing world go green too.
The review also promised to encourage other countries around the world to agree to “more ambitious nationally-determined contributions and long-term decarbonisation strategies” in order to stop the planet from warming up beyond repair.
The PM vowed to use Britain’s hosting of the major summit to “rally as many nations as possible behind the target of Net Zero by 2050.”
Britain has already sealed its commitment in law and will urge others to do the same, and take steps towards it.
Boris also said Britain had to keep open doors with China to tackle climate change.
He slapped down calls from MPs to put the superpower out in the cold and said Britain must find a new way to work with countries we don’t always agree with.
The PM told the Commons: “We will also work with China where that is consistent with our values and interests, including building a stronger and positive economic relationship and in addressing climate change.”
