Question

To ask the President of COP26, what steps he is taking to help ensure that signatories of the Glasgow Leader’s Declaration on Forests and Land Use are held accountable; how that declaration is being connected to the Convention on Biological Diversity COP15 process; and if he will make a statement.

The UK Government is committed to taking bold action to tackle the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. However, we are clear that countries cannot tackle environmental and climate crises alone; we need a concerted global effort. The Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use is an unprecedented commitment from 142 countries, covering over 91% of global forests, to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030. It’s underpinned by almost $20bn of public and private finance, by sustainable trade and by support for indigenous peoples’ rights. We will work with other countries that endorsed the Declaration to convert this political commitment into strong action on forests and land use. This will include working through multilateral events in 2022 such as meetings of the G7 and G20, and at COP15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

All Parties to the Paris Agreement must report on their progress towards its goals via nationally determined contributions - which cover every emitting sector including forests and land use. At COP26, as part of the Glasgow Climate Pact, countries agreed to revisit and strengthen their current emissions targets to 2030 in 2022.