WORLD LEADERS MUST USE COP26 TO ‘SAVE HUMANITY’

▶ UN chief Guterres says summit should be a turning point in the battle against climate change

World leaders must use Cop26 to “save humanity” as climate change causes increasingly extreme weather, the UN’s Secretary General has said, as delegates from 196 countries prepare to take part in the milestone summit.

Antonio Guterres said the climate summit “must be a turning point” after UN weather experts raised the alarm over record temperatures and rising sea levels.

As delegates began arriving in Glasgow, G20 leaders agreed at a meeting in Rome to reach net zero carbon emissions “by or around mid-century” and stop financing coal power abroad.

They said they would take on a “leadership role” at the Glasgow summit, where the developing world is looking to rich countries to lead the way in cutting emissions and financing the green transition.

“We’re proud of these results but we must remember that it’s only the start,” said Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, after activists criticised the G20 for a lack of ambition.

Cop26 delegates will be under pressure to reach a deal that keeps alive hopes of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, the goal set out by the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Alok Sharma, the summit president, used an opening speech yesterday to tell delegates that “the lights are flashing red on the climate dashboard”.

“If we act now, and we act together, we can protect our precious planet,” he said.

“So let’s come together over these two weeks, and ensure that where Paris promised, Glasgow delivers.”

Scientists say climate change is already becoming visible. In a report published yesterday, the World Meteorological Organisation said carbon emissions had “propelled the planet into uncharted territory”.

It said the seven calendar years since 2015 were set to be the warmest on record, with the rise in sea levels reaching a new peak this year.

Although 2021 has been cooler than recent years, this does not mark an improvement in the long-term trend, the organisation said.

The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is at a high, with carbon dioxide levels at 149 per cent of preindustrial levels.

G20 countries have reaffirmed their commitment to organise $100 billion in annual climate funding to developing countries by 2023 – three years after the original deadline.

But environmental campaigners have been unimpressed by the group’s ambition.

“If the G20 was a dress rehearsal for Cop26, then world leaders fluffed their lines,” said Greenpeace executive director Jennifer Morgan.

Preparations for the summit were clouded by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Guterres called on countries to unite despite the prospect of tough negotiations on issues such as carbon pricing.

“Scientists are clear on the facts. Now leaders need to be just as clear in their actions,” he said.

“From the ocean depths to mountaintops, from melting glaciers to relentless extreme weather events, ecosystems and communities around the globe are being devastated.

“The door is open. The solutions are there. Cop26 must be a turning point. We must act now – with ambition and solidarity – to safeguard our future and save humanity.”

Delegates began to arrive in Scotland yesterday despite a fallen tree blocking the main railway line from London to Glasgow.

Patricia Espinosa, the UN’s climate change chief, said officials had to be willing to compromise to keep the targets set out in the Paris Agreement within reach.

“We have no choice but to make Cop26 a success. For that, we need unity of purpose,” she said.

Meanwhile, UN weather experts have said extreme conditions are already becoming “the new norm” as greenhouse gas emissions take their toll.

Scientists believe extreme weather events such as floods and droughts will become more frequent if temperatures rise by more than the limit set out in Paris in 2015.

But the target will not be met at the current rate of emissions, said Prof Petteri Taalas, secretary general of the WMO.

Cop26 is an opportunity to “put us back on track”, he said.

The UN has called on countries to unite despite the prospect of tough negotiations in Glasgow