'Time To Deliver' – Alok Sharma Says As Cop26 Reaches Crunch Time

“This is our collective moment in history, this is our chance to forge a cleaner, healthier, more prosperous world."
Cop26 President Alok Sharma MP speaks during the stock taking Plenary on day thirteen of the COP26 on November 12, 2021 in Glasgow.
Cop26 President Alok Sharma MP speaks during the stock taking Plenary on day thirteen of the COP26 on November 12, 2021 in Glasgow.
Ian Forsyth via Getty Images

Alok Sharma told world leaders it is “time to deliver” as he admitted key disagreements remain over the Cop26 draft deal.

The president of the high stakes climate change conference called on countries to reach an agreement and identify issues that require “urgent collective attention”.

He told the summit: “This is our collective moment in history, this is our chance to forge a cleaner, healthier, more prosperous world.

“This is our time to deliver on the high ambition set by our leaders at the start of this summit.

“We must rise to the occasion.”

He made the comments on the final day of the conference in Glasgow where negotiators have been intensely trying to finalise an agreement.

It comes after a fresh draft was released this morning that appeared to soften the push to curb fossil fuels.

Sharma said that despite “extensive discussions” key disagreements remained as he called for “pragmatic and workable solutions”.

He called on negotiators for a “final injection of that can-do spirit” to get the deal over the line.

“Across the full suite of the draft decisions, a small number of key issues remain which require urgent, collective attention,” he added.

The summit is supposed to end at 6pm on Friday, November 12, but many are expecting a delay.

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she would not bet “lots of money” on Friday being the last day of the summit.

The latest draft has strengthened its language on getting governments to urgently tackle climate change.

It calls on countries to “revisit and strengthen the 2030 targets” by the end of 2022 to align with global goals to limit temperature rises to “well below” 2C and try to limit them to 1.5C.

It also asks countries to strengthen their support for poorer countries hit hardest by global warming.

It has given a date of 2025 for when developed countries should double the provision of finance to help developing countries adapt to climate change.

Any deal must be agreed by all countries at the meeting.

Close

What's Hot