Newsdeck

Newsdeck

Don’t just talk – act on climate, Queen Elizabeth signals to world leaders

Queen Elizabeth II during an inspection of the Balaklava Company, 5 Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland at the gates at Balmoral, as she takes up summer residence at the castle, on August 9, 2021 in Ballater, Aberdeenshire. (Photo by Jane Barlow - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

LONDON, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Britain's Queen Elizabeth said she was irritated by world leaders who talk about climate change but do nothing to address global warming, and added it was still unclear who would turn up at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.

The queen’s rare public foray into big power climate politics came as worries grew that Chinese President Xi Jinping, leader of the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter, would not attend the Oct. 31-Nov. 12 summit.

Western leaders such as U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson have repeatedly warned that the world must change to slow climate change, but many environmental activists say leaders talk too much and do too little.

The queen, who is due to attend the 26th United Nations climate change conference, COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland, appeared to agree in a conversation that was picked up by a microphone while visiting the Welsh assembly in Cardiff.

“Extraordinary isn’t it. I’ve been hearing all about COP,” the 95-year-old monarch told Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, the wife of her son, Charles, Prince of Wales, and the presiding officer of the Welsh assembly. “Still don’t know who is coming.”

“We only know about people who are not coming… It’s really irritating when they talk, but they don’t do,” Elizabeth said.

She become the third member of the royal family to accuse world leaders of inaction this week, with both Charles and his son William saying COP needed to produce action, not words.

 

‘HOT AIR’

Johnson, as host of the summit, has cast the summit as one of the last major chances to cool down the planet, and had hoped that it would showcase his attempt at global leadership.

World leaders, he has said, need to come up with deeds, not just “hot air”.

Biden and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison will attend the summit. The Kremlin has not yet said whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said he aims to attend COP26 remotely, though he has called an election for Oct. 31. The Times newspaper has reported that Johnson was told that China’s Xi would not attend in person.

Xi, China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong, has not left the People’s Republic since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, though he has joined video calls with global leaders.

Xi’s absence from discussions – either in person or via video calls – would mark a setback for Johnson’s hopes of getting world leaders to agree to a significant climate deal.

On a trip to a school in Bristol, southwest England, Johnson told baffled schoolchildren: “I promise to get world leaders to cut greenhouse gases and save the planet.”

He later held up a signed, leaf-shaped piece of paper on which he had written his pledge.

By Guy Faulconbridge.

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by John Stonestreet and Gareth Jones).

Gallery

Comments - Please in order to comment.

Please peer review 3 community comments before your comment can be posted

We would like our readers to start paying for Daily Maverick...

…but we are not going to force you to. Over 10 million users come to us each month for the news. We have not put it behind a paywall because the truth should not be a luxury.

Instead we ask our readers who can afford to contribute, even a small amount each month, to do so.

If you appreciate it and want to see us keep going then please consider contributing whatever you can.

Support Daily Maverick→
Payment options

Become a Maverick Insider

This could have been a paywall

On another site this would have been a paywall. Maverick Insider keeps our content free for all.

Become an Insider

Every seed of hope will one day sprout.

South African citizens throughout the country are standing up for our human rights. Stay informed, connected and inspired by our weekly FREE Maverick Citizen newsletter.