During his speech this morning at COP31, Andy Burnham announced the appointment of the first ever UK special representative for climate security.
Fulfilling the role is Dame Madeline Alessandri, who was previously serving as Chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee.
He said: “I have pledged a new era of British leadership over the next decade. The consensus we once enjoyed on science and climate has gone, and the reality is now the world will reach 1.5 degrees.
“Climate leadership and action have become more urgent. Britain will answer the call. Climate is a national security issue. As evidence of that, I am today announcing the appointment of Dame Madeline Alessandri, as the first UK special representative for climate security.”
He then continued on to announce UK support for the ‘Amplify’ programme, which acts as an international climate finance initiative.
He said: “We know also that the transition must be paid for and here the UK is uniquely placed to help. The City of London has become adept at taking a modest amount of public funding and converting it into significant sums of private investment.
Building on that success, I am today announcing UK support for the Amplify programme. It will aim to secure 5 billion pounds of new private finance for clean energy projects around the world.”
This investment will back global climate security, as well as UK energy security as a whole.
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