Western Daily Press (Saturday)
Cop28: PM unveils ‘largest wind farm’ plan
RISHI Sunak has said the UK’s impact at the Cop28 climate summit should not be measured by “hours spent” as he ended his 11-hour visit by announcing new investment for Dogger Bank wind farm.
The Prime Minister said a deal worth up to £11 billion had been struck by energy firms RWE and Masdar which will help fund what will be the world’s biggest offshore wind project.
Mr Sunak faced questions about the length of his trip to the environmental conference in Dubai, but suggested the UK’s influence should be judged instead by its material achievements.
“I wouldn’t measure our impact here by hours spent, I would measure it by the actual things that we’re doing that are making a difference,” he said.
Announcing the deal, Mr Sunak told the conference: “I’m pleased to announce a new deal between Masdar and RWE which includes a commitment to jointly invest up to £11 billion into the UK’s new wind farm at Dogger Bank, which will be the biggest in the world.
“This is a huge boost for UK renewables, creating more jobs, helping to power three million homes and increasing our energy
security.” Mr Sunak earlier announced £1.6 billion for international climate finance, including to support projects to halt deforestation and accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
But his attendance at Cop28 comes after he scaled back a host of pledges designed to help the UK reach net zero by 2050 and vowed to “max out” the UK’s oil and gas reserves by granting new North Sea drilling licences.
Mr Sunak was asked as he flew to Dubai what he would say to those
accusing him of being unserious about climate action.
“We’ve got a better track record than any other major economy in decarbonising,” he told journalists on the plane.
“Any which way I look at it, we are a leader on this issue. We have been, we’re continuing to do so. So I will walk around very proudly tomorrow championing the UK’s achievements in this space.”
Labour described Mr Sunak’s speech to Cop28 as “complacent”, and shadow energy secretary Ed
Miliband accused him of being “in denial about the energy bills crisis at home and the weakening of the United Kingdom’s standing abroad in his time in office”.
Earlier Mr Sunak said the UK can “stand tall” at the Cop28 climate conference as it remains a “leader” on tackling climate change despite his rollback of ambitions at home.
The Prime Minister also heaped praise on the King for his involvement in the annual UN climate talks in Dubai, saying Charles’ role attested to Britain’s authority on green issues.