Daily Briefing: World leaders ‘press for action’ | Europe’s EV drive | New wildfire fund

25.09.26

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News

At UN, world leaders press for climate change action

Jennifer McDermott, The Associated Press

The Associated Press rounds up the key comments by world leaders on climate change at the UN general assembly in New York. It includes UN secretary general Antonio Guterres, who said the world cannot “allow countries and cultures to vanish beneath the waves”. The article quotes Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, president of Brazil, who warned that the topic of climate change has “disappeared from the debates of the G7 and G20, forums that bring together the largest carbon emitters. It is time to resume the offensive and inflict a defeat on denialism.” The article also quotes Shisir Khanal, minister of foreign affairs for Nepal, who called upon the leaders gathered to “treat climate action not as a charity, but as a matter of justice”. Reuters covers comments by Nepal’s prime minister Balendra Shah at the assembly, as he called for grants, not loans, to support flood recovery. A separate Associated Press article quotes Shah, who said the deadly floods in August were “not just a local tragedy. It was a warning to the world. And I ask you today: Have you really heard that warning?” The Guardian adds that Nepal’s recovery and reconstruction will cost around 10% of its GDP, according to Shah, who also noted that Nepal has contributed just a tenth of 1% of global emissions. [For more on the floods, see Carbon Brief’s Q&A.]

Meanwhile, Grist covers a “rare win for multilateralism” as the assembly “approved a unanimous resolution on how to handle sea level rise”. The outlet notes that the US “did not block” the resolution, despite its “references to climate change and climate aid for developing countries”. Climate Home News also covers the effort to protect marine ecosystems and coastal communities. [Carbon Brief set out the threat of sea level rise in a recent explainer.]

MORE ON UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Inside Climate News covers calls by Panamanian president José Raúl Mulino for world leaders to adopt a non-binding treaty declaring the universal rights of nature.
All Africa reports that on the sidelines of the UN general assembly, Liberia is lobbying governments to remove the carbon price and global fund from the International Maritime Organization’s net-zero shipping rules.

US: Fossil-fuel firms in line for billions in benefits after answering Trump’s donation call

Maya Yang, The Guardian

The Guardian covers a new report finding the fossil fuel industry has secured an “estimated $190bn in tax breaks and subsidies over the next decade” after providing pre-election campaign donations for Trump. Released yesterday, the report from Democratic senators details what they have described as the “fossil fuel industry’s expansive influence over the Trump administration”, according to the outlet. The article quotes the senators, who said that the bargain between fossil fuel companies and the Trump administration “came at a price, and American families are the ones paying it: higher energy bills and higher costs associated with increased damages from climate change and air and water pollution”. Reuters adds that Trump asked for $1bn in donations during his 2024 election campaign and hundreds of millions of the campaign spending can be tracked back to energy companies.

MORE ON US

Quoting analysis by Carbon Brief, the Washington Post looks at how “the Trump agenda has inadvertently dealt a sizable blow against global warming”, given the Iran war’s impact on fossil fuels.
Politico reports that the European authorities have “downplayed” US threats to temporarily ban all exports of US diesel.
The Associated Press reports that the US energy department has announced almost $2bn in funding to “try to squeeze more electricity out of the nation’s ageing and stressed power grid”.
The Guardian covers comments by California governor Gavin Newsom arguing that Democratic politicians do not talk about climate change “because they don’t know how to talk about it”.

Oil price rise creates more pressure on UK policymakers before budget

Heather Stewart and Graeme Wearden, The Guardian

The Guardian reports that another jump in oil prices is “creating a growing headache for UK policymakers ahead of John Healey’s budget next month”. It adds that the Treasury is having to concede that a sharp jump in oil and gas prices means there is “less room” than hoped a month ago. In a frontpage article, the Times reports that ministers are drawing up plans for targeted energy bill support for poorer households in the budget in October. It adds that this comes amid fears that the Iran war will lead to a “winter cost of living crisis for millions”. The Times covers comments by the Bank of England’s deputy governor Clare Lombardelli, who warns that interest rates are likely to rise this year if oil prices do not fall soon. Relatedly, a Daily Mirror “exclusive” covers efforts to prepare households for national emergencies, ahead of the challenges El Niño could bring this winter.

MORE ON UK

BBC News reports that the boss of Great British Energy has “defended the state-owned company’s job creation record after claims its impact on Aberdeen has been oversold”.
The Daily Telegraph reports that prime minister Andy Burnham is “under pressure” to protect the UK from US president Donald Trump’s proposed diesel ban.
BusinessGreen reports that August saw the highest number of vouchers issued in a single month for heat pumps via the government’s boiler upgrade scheme.
A Guardian explainer looks at why the UK’s suppressed climate national security report is so significant.
The Times and Guardian cover the UK’s £21.1bn trade deficit in food and drink, with experts warning that the UK’s food security is threatened in a “world beset by conflict and the ever-increasing impacts of climate change”.
The Guardian reports that Newcastle University is facing backlash after appointing the heir of an Indian oil and gas fortune as professor of sustainability.

Rising oil prices drive Europeans towards electric vehicles

Jonathan Tirone, Bloomberg

Bloomberg reports that fuel prices equivalent to $10 a gallon are pushing Europeans to adopt electric vehicles (EVs) “like never before”. It adds that sales of fully electric cars have increased from less than 20% of sales in January to nearly 30% in August, as the US-Iran war continues to push up oil prices. The article states: “The unintended consequences of the conflict are turning into a boom for climate advocates seeking to lower greenhouse gas emissions.” Reuters reports that demand for EVs helped offset steep declines in petrol and diesel sales in Europe. The Guardian adds that sales of Chinese hybrid cars have “rocked”, “underlining growing concerns in Brussels over the future of the European car industry”. [New Carbon Brief shows that it is now nine times cheaper in the UK to drive an EV than a petrol or diesel car.]

MORE ON EUROPE

Reuters reports that high gas prices are “driving European utilities back to coal”, with generation from the fuel expected to jump by a quarter in the next six months.
The Irish Independent reports that the carbon tax will be cut on home-heating oil in the upcoming Irish budget, as well as reductions on excise duty for petrol and diesel being extended into next spring.
The Financial Times covers warnings from Brussels that European nations should “tackle [the] energy crisis or see [the] far right take power”.

New wildfire fund launches for South America, but funding gap remains

Gabriela Sá Pessoa and Anton L. Delgado, The Associated Press

A report published yesterday shows there is still a multimillion-dollar funding gap for preserving tropical forests, “which are key to fighting climate change”, reports the Associated Press. It adds that the fund, which aims to raise $100m for firefighting in South America, was announced this week at the UN general assembly and New York Climate Week. The article quotes Kumar Garg, president of Renaissance Philanthropy, one of the groups steering the new fund, who said: “We’re at the possibility that we might lose the Amazon altogether and once we lose the Amazon, we don’t get it back – the next couple of years are really going to matter.” The article notes that the fund excludes vast swathes of forests in Africa and south-east Asia.

Trump and Xi buy time on trade with neither able to afford a fight

Bloomberg

US president Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping have agreed to “maintain a trade truce” until early 2027 despite persisting tensions over issues including rare earth minerals and technology restrictions, reports Bloomberg. The two leaders reached the agreement as Xi visits Washington this week, according to the outlet, and it removes “much of the tension around Xi’s first state visit to the US since 2015 and clears the way for two more meetings between the presidents planned in the coming months at summits in Shenzhen and Miami”. Reuters says that the US’s “ongoing need” for imports of rare earth minerals “underscores Trump’s weak bargaining position with Xi” as they meet this week. The Daily Telegraph reports on how Trump and Xi are vying for “energy supremacy as the Gulf’s oil cartel crumbles”.

MORE ON CHINA

Germany’s auto industry association has warned of “growing trade imbalances” with China, reports Reuters. Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez has said the EU should “aim to negotiate an agreement” over the imbalances rather than “get dragged into a damaging dispute”, according to Bloomberg.
An article by the Economic Daily says China should build “coal replacement capacity” and reserves to improve the “stability and resilience” of energy supply.
The NEA says that China’s installed capacity of solar power and wind power increased by 16.3% and 19.6% from January to August, respectively, reports BJX News.
Reuters reports that China’s lowest levels of fuel inventories have increased the prospect of tighter export controls from Beijing in October.
Bloomberg: “Turkey lays out COP31 agenda as China seeks larger climate diplomacy role.”

Comment

The Guardian view on a supersized El Niño: a natural phenomenon and human folly are a lethal combination

Editorial, The Guardian

An editorial in the Guardian looks at the “super-sized, Godzilla-level” El Niño, noting that such a description “would sound hyperbolic were they not issuing from eminent scientists”. The article runs through some of the expected impacts of the weather pattern, which has been “supercharged” by the “huge amounts of heat in an atmosphere” due to climate change. It argues that the world cannot continue with the “status quo”, calling on leaders, including UK prime minister Andy Burnham, to “seize the opportunity to make the political case for tough action on emissions”. The editorial concludes: “This unprecedented El Niño poses an immense threat. It could also be a spur to action against global heating and its associated injustices, which otherwise will only deepen.” [For more on the record-breaking El Niño, see Carbon Brief’s recent interactive explainer.]

MORE COMMENT

An editorial in Nature argues that the Nepal floods pose the “biggest test yet” for the UN loss-and-damage fund”. [Carbon Brief analysis shows Nepal’s request to the fund is just 0.7% of what is estimated to be needed for recovery.]
Veteran climate activist and author Bill McKibben, writing on his Crucial Years substack, reflects on a project to install solar panels.
An editorial in the Daily Telegraph argues that the Labour government delaying a decision on North Sea oil and gas licences “is costing Britain dearly”.
In Reuters, energy columnist Ron Bousso discusses the “diesel dilemma”, as the US considers a ban amid surging prices and supply squeezes.

Research

A “storyline attribution” study highlights how continued warming could “shift several South American countries towards increasingly persistent heat and drought” | Weather and Climate Extremes
Under a low-emissions scenario, the world could achieve an 11% increase in the “blue wellbeing index”, a new measure of ocean-derived wellbeing | Communications: Earth and Environment
Support for “novel carbon removal” methods hinges on “opening planning processes to public and expert scrutiny, benefit sharing and not-for-profit arrangements” | Nature Climate Change