3 h. ago Cop30 delegates ‘far apart’ on phasing out fossil fuels and cutting carbon

President of talks urges ministers and high-ranking officials to find common ground as conference nears its endCop30 live – latest updatesClimate crisis talks look likely to stretch well into the weekend in Brazil, with countries still far apart on the crucial issues of phasing out fossil fuels and cutting carbon.The Cop30 president, André Corrêa do Lago, urged ministers and high-ranking officials from more than 190 countries to find common ground: “We need to preserve this regime [of the Paris climate agreement] with the spirit of cooperation, not in the spirit of who is going to win or is willing to lose’” he said. “Because we know if we don’t strengthen this, everyone will lose.” Continue reading...

Politics

4 h. ago Cop30 live: summit president says ‘everybody will lose’ as fears rise that conference will end without a deal

André Corrêa do Lago issues plea to preserve Paris agreement with countries far from reaching agreement on scheduled final dayAn informal stocktake plenary is now underway [see live feed at the top of the blog]. Here the presidency will update parties on the state of the negotiations.My colleague Damian Carrington will be keeping across the main developments. Continue reading...

Politics

7 h. ago Cop30 live: summit president warns ‘everybody will lose’ if countries fail to cooperate

André Corrêa do Lago issues plea to preserve Paris agreement with countries far from reaching agreement on scheduled final dayAn informal stocktake plenary is now underway [see live feed at the top of the blog]. Here the presidency will update parties on the state of the negotiations.My colleague Damian Carrington will be keeping across the main developments. Continue reading...

Events

20 h. ago Cop30: dozens of countries threaten to block resolution unless it contains roadmap to fossil fuel phase

Exclusive: The Guardian understands Brazil had been planning to drop a roadmap to a transition away from fossil fuels amid opposition from petro statesCountries supporting a phase-out of fossil fuels at the Cop30 climate summit in Brazil have threatened to block any agreement that does not include such a commitment, in a significant escalation of tensions at the crunch talks, the Guardian can reveal.The simmering row over a potential roadmap for the “transition away from fossil fuels” boiled over on Thursday night when a group of at least 29 countries signed a strongly worded letter to Brazil, the Cop presidency. The leaked letter demanded that the roadmap be included in the outcome of the talks, which are due to end on Friday but likely to carry on into the weekend. Continue reading...

Events

25 h. ago Cop30 climate summit in Brazil disrupted after fire breaks out in venue

Event thrown into confusion after conference centre evacuated but UN says no one hurtBrazilian president will take fossil fuel phase-out plan to G20 summitTalks at the Cop30 climate summit in Brazil were disrupted on Thursday after a fire broke out in the venue, triggering an evacuation just as negotiators were hunkering down to try to land a deal to strengthen international efforts to address climate change.António Guterres, the United Nations secretary-general, had appealed earlier in the day for a deal from the summit, welcoming calls from some for clarity on the hotly disputed subject of weaning the world off fossil fuels. Continue reading...

Politics

53 h. ago Divide over fossil fuels phaseout can be bridged, Cop30 president says

Exclusive: André Corrêa do Lago says rise of clean energy must be acknowledged and rich countries need to do moreCop30 live – latest updatesCop30: click here for full Guardian coverage of climate talks in BrazilOil-producing countries need to acknowledge the rise of clean energy, and rich countries will have to provide more assurances on finance if the chasm between negotiating nations at Cop30 is to be bridged, the president of the summit has said.André Corrêa do Lago, the veteran Brazilian climate diplomat in charge of the talks, said: “Developing countries are looking at developed countries as countries that could be much more generous in supporting them to be more sustainable. They could offer more finance, and technology.” Continue reading...

Politics

60 h. ago FTSE 100 Live 19 November: Inflation dip fuels rate cut bets, WH Smith boss quits

Inflation fell to 3.6% last month as official figures today provided a pre-Budget boost for Rachel Reeves.

Economics

3 d. ago More than 80 countries at Cop30 join call for roadmap to fossil fuel phase

Countries from Africa, Asia, Latin America, Pacific and Europe plead for transition to be central outcome of talksCop30 live – latest updatesMore than 80 countries have joined a call for a roadmap to phasing out fossil fuels, in a dramatic intervention into stuck negotiations at the UN Cop30 climate summit.Countries from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific joined with EU member states and the UK to make an impassioned plea for the “transition away from fossil fuels” to be a central outcome of the talks, despite stiff opposition from petrostates and some other major economies. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Cop30 live: Confusion over next summit as Australian PM says they would not block Turkey as host

Who will host next year’s Cop? The tussle between Australia and Turkey continues, with comments from the Australian PM adding to the lack of clarityWe should not fear the forces of denial and delay, UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has warned, because “they are losing this fight”.Speaking to delegates at Cop30, the Labour politician acknowledged the existence of climate deniers and delayers across the world – including in the UK – and described them as “well funded, well organised, and determined”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Cop30 live: Ministers from global north and south unite in call for a roadmap away from fossil fuels

Representatives from Germany, the UK, the Marshall Islands and a number of other countries came together to issue a call for a fossil fuel roadmapWe should not fear the forces of denial and delay, UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has warned, because “they are losing this fight”.Speaking to delegates at Cop30, the Labour politician acknowledged the existence of climate deniers and delayers across the world – including in the UK – and described them as “well funded, well organised, and determined”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Cop30 live: first draft text revives shift away from fossil fuels

So-called “mutirão decision” text provides first look at potential outcomes of UN climate summit – but don’t call it a cover text, say BraziliansWe should not fear the forces of denial and delay, UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has warned, because “they are losing this fight”.Speaking to delegates at Cop30, the Labour politician acknowledged the existence of climate deniers and delayers across the world – including in the UK – and described them as “well funded, well organised, and determined”. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago More than 300 big agriculture lobbyists took part in Cop30, investigation finds

Lobbyists representing industry responsible for a quarter to a third of global emissions participated in key talks at the UN climate summitMore than 300 industrial agriculture lobbyists have participated at this year’s UN climate talks taking place in the Brazilian Amazon, where the industry is the leading cause of deforestation, a new investigation has found.The number of lobbyists representing the interests of industrial cattle farming, commodity grains and pesticides is up 14% on last year’s summit in Baku – and larger than the delegation of the world’s 10th largest economy, Canada, which brought 220 delegates to Cop30 in Belém, according to the joint investigation by DeSmog and the Guardian. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago More than 300 big agriculture lobbyists have taken part in Cop30, investigation finds

Lobbyists representing industry responsible for a quarter to a third of global emissions participated in key talks at the UN climate summitMore than 300 industrial agriculture lobbyists have participated at this year’s UN climate talks taking place in the Brazilian Amazon, where the industry is the leading cause of deforestation, a new investigation has found.The number of lobbyists representing the interests of industrial cattle farming, commodity grains and pesticides is up 14% on last year’s summit in Baku – and larger than the delegation of the world’s 10th largest economy, Canada, which brought 220 delegates to Cop30 in Belém, according to the joint investigation by DeSmog and the Guardian. Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago Have courage to create fossil fuel phaseout roadmap at Cop30, Brazilian minister urges

Marina Silva says contentious plan would be ‘ethical answer’ to climate crisis but does not commit Brazil to itBrazil’s environment minister, Marina Silva, has urged all countries to have the courage to address the need for a fossil fuel phaseout, calling the drawing up of a roadmap for it an “ethical” response to the climate crisis.She emphasised, however, that the process would be voluntary for those governments that wished to participate, and “self-determined”. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago Labour government sends 210 delegates to Brazil's COP30 climate conference generating more than 2.5million air miles (while the world's biggest polluters all happily stay at home)

Opposition parties rounded on the government over the numbers sent to South America and the size of the entourage, which will create an estimated 500 tonnes of CO2.

Society

7 d. ago Cop30 live: ‘If we continue destroying everything on this earth there will be chaos,’ warns Indigenous chief

Earlier on day five of the climate summit, activists blockaded the main entrance demanding to speak to the Brazilian presidentNorway and the United Arab Emirates - both significant fossil fuel producers - are among the ministerial pairings announced by the Brazilian Cop30 Presidency. The task of the pairings is to consult with countries on specific issues and report their views back to the presidency, to help the negotiations progress.The ministers from Norway and the UAE will work on the “global stocktake”, the strand of the talks about the big gap between the carbon emissions cuts needed and the real world. At its heart is cutting fossil fuel emissions, which makes it a target for obstruction by petrostates. The UAE hosted Cop28 in 2023, which delivered the first ever mention of fossil fuels in a Cop outcome.Gambia and Germany, working on adaptationEgypt and Spain, working on mitigation, i.e. cutting emissionsMexico and Poland, working on just transition, i.e. making the switch to...

Events

7 d. ago Cop day 5 live: Indigenous activists blockade the summit centre as climate conference continues

As the climate conference goes into its fifth day, with huge amounts still unresolved, there were reports that activists had blockaded the entrance to the centreNorway and the United Arab Emirates - both significant fossil fuel producers - are among the ministerial pairings announced by the Brazilian Cop30 Presidency. The task of the pairings is to consult with countries on specific issues and report their views back to the presidency, to help the negotiations progress.The ministers from Norway and the UAE will work on the “global stocktake”, the strand of the talks about the big gap between the carbon emissions cuts needed and the real world. At its heart is cutting fossil fuel emissions, which makes it a target for obstruction by petrostates. The UAE hosted Cop28 in 2023, which delivered the first ever mention of fossil fuels in a Cop outcome.Gambia and Germany, working on adaptationEgypt and Spain, working on mitigation, i.e. cutting emissionsMexico and Poland, working on just tr...

Politics

7 d. ago Fossil fuel lobbyists outnumber all Cop30 delegations except Brazil, report says

One in every 25 participants at 2025 UN climate summit is a fossil fuel lobbyist, according to Kick Big Polluters OutMore than 1,600 fossil fuel lobbyists have been granted access to the Cop30 climate negotiations in Belém, significantly outnumbering every single country’s delegation apart from the host Brazil, new analysis has found.One in every 25 participants at this year’s UN climate summit is a fossil fuel lobbyist, according to the analysis by the Kick Big Polluters Out (KBPO) coalition, raising serious questions about the corporate capture and credibility of the annual Cop negotiations. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Government issues statement on calls to extend 5p fuel duty cut beyond March 2026

Rumours that a similar levy could be placed on EV drivers have gained momentum in recent weeks

Politics

1 week ago Top UN official warns inaction on climate crisis ‘will never be forgiven’ as Cop30 opens in Brazil

Simon Stiell told ministers from nearly 200 countries in Belém that governments dragging their feet on cutting fossil fuel use would be held responsible for famines, conflicts, and economic turmoil

Events