Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to media reports that British International Investment holds at least 20 investments in fossil fuel companies, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of these holdings with the UK’s commitment to end investments in fossil fuels overseas.

All investment commitments made by British International Investment (BII) since December 2020 meet the conditions set out in BII's Climate Change Strategy (https://www.bii.co.uk/en/climate-change-strategy/) and the UK Government's fossil fuel policy. The policy excludes investment in the vast majority of fossil fuel sub-sectors with very limited exceptions, such as where an investment would be part of enabling a transition to a net-zero economy.

Commitments made by BII prior to the implementation of the above policies are subject to the legal terms agreed at the time of the commitment.

Through its Climate Change Strategy, BII is committed to achieving net-zero by 2050. Since 2017, BII has committed £1.7 billion in climate finance. Information on all of BII's investments including their energy portfolio is published on its website (available https://www.bii.co.uk/en/news-insight/insight/articles/the-transition-to-net-zero-explaining-our-current-energy-portfolio/).