COP26 'A Missed Opportunity' - Alliance

The Global climate change conference COP26 in Glasgow was a missed opportunity with too many decisions being "kicked down the road", an Alliance MP has said.

The party's Deputy Leader Stephen Farry voiced his disappointment at the hotly-anticipated event, welcoming the progress of the Glasgow Climate Pact but criticising "weak and insufficient" commitments to net zero by 2050.

The North Down MP said Northern Ireland must set a stronger example itself through putting in place a Climate Change Act and a Green New Deal. 


"The world is still falling well short of what is required to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees by the end of the century," said Mr Farry. "The stark reality is global temperature is still rising and with current commitments we are on course to a disastrous 2.4 degrees rise. The world can’t afford many more missed opportunities. 

"We, in Northern Ireland, can't really challenge China and India to do more unless and until we have our own challenging Climate Change Act. This must be supported by a Green New Deal which integrates an economic and social transformation, with the measures required to address the climate emergency. Climate adaption shouldn't be seen as a threat but rather an opportunity to create thousands of new green jobs."