Climate Change Threat ‘More Fundamental’ Than Terrorism – UK Foreign Secretary

The UK Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, has committed to placing climate action and environmental sustainability at the forefront of Britain’s foreign policy.

The commitment includes the appointment of new special representatives dedicated to these critical areas.

In a speech delivered on Tuesday, Lammy said climate change and the nature crisis represent the defining geopolitical challenge of current times, even surpassing terrorism in its urgency and impact.

“The threat may not feel as urgent as a terrorist or an imperialist autocrat, but it is more fundamental. It is systemic, pervasive, and accelerating towards us,”

“While I am foreign secretary, action on the climate and nature crisis will be central to all the Foreign Office does. This is critical given the scale of the threat, but also the scale of the opportunity.”

Lammy is expected to announce the launch of Labour’s initiative to establish a global clean power alliance.

The initiative aims to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and technologies to assist nations in their decarbonisation efforts and to foster innovation in clean energy.

Labour’s green transition agenda, highlighted by the creation of GB Energy — a new state-owned company dedicated to investing in clean energy — marks a departure from the previous Conservative administration’s retreat from key environmental targets.

While there has been growing scepticism on the right regarding the feasibility and cost of achieving net zero carbon emissions, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has pledged that his government will be the first major economy to decarbonise its energy system by 2030.

Climate Change Threat ‘More Fundamental’ Than Terrorism – UK Foreign Secretary is first published on The Whistler Newspaper