Comments on Paris Agreement agreed at UN climate talks

Richard Black, director of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said: “As a result of the agreement in Paris, we now live in a world in which every country on Earth has pledged to tackle climate change by constraining its greenhouse gas emissions.

“It marks the fulfilment of a call made a quarter of a century ago by Margaret Thatcher who, as a professional chemist, understood the risks posed by climate change and called for an international treaty to combat it.

“By itself, the Paris agreement won’t keep climate change below levels that pose a threat to human societies, economies and nature, but it does put the world onto that path; so it is a truly significant moment, and 12 December 2015 is undeniably a day that will go down in human history.”

Marylyn Haines Evans, National Federation Of Womens Institutes (NFWI) Vice Chair and Chair of NFWI Public Affairs, said: “Ordinary people in Britain, like WI members, have repeatedly voiced their concerns about the threat climate change poses to people’s wellbeing and our natural habitats.

“Women around the world are more often on the sharp end of climate change and by our members it’s seen as a particular challenge for our children and grandchildren, so the importance of addressing it now, rather than leaving it for the future, can’t be overstated. This deal gives us hope and should help to bring more balance back to our climate.”

Guy Smith, NFU Vice President, said: “Farmers here in Britain, and indeed around the world, are on the front line of climate change. We are amongst the first to see the impacts in our daily work bearing witness to extreme weather events such as flooding and drought. Tackling both the causes and effects of climate change will be vital to make our food supply more resilient, as farmers invest to produce more with less impact on the environment, both today and in the future.”

Prof Joanna Haigh, Co-Director of the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London, said: “This agreement is highly significant in the way in which it responds to the scientific evidence around climate change. The science has never been clearer about the risks we face and the new aim of keeping temperature rise to 1.5 degrees better reflects these risks.”

Richard Benyon, Conservative MP for Newbury and former environment Minister, said: “The British government has demonstrated an important leadership role in the international negotiations, reflecting conservative values such as respect for sound science and economics, as well the need to protect the natural world. This is a hugely significant moment and Amber Rudd in particular deserves praise for her role in the tough, crucial, final days of the talks.”

Professor Hugh Montgomery, Co-Chair of the Lancet Commission on Health and Climate Change, and Director of the Institute for Human Health and Performance at UCL, said: “The impact of climate change on everything from food production to heat stress and water scarcity means that it poses the single biggest threat to global health.

“This agreement is incredibly important for beginning to ease that health burden, ultimately saving lives. It will also set us on a path to a cleaner, less polluted world which in turn reduces costs for our healthcare systems.”

Dr Camilla Toulmin, Senior Fellow of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) said: “Ahead of this summit the Prime Minister said a new deal in Paris was essential for tackling global poverty and he was right.

“The poorest are most often at the sharp end of the extremes of drought and flooding that climate change brings. The deal in Paris, while not perfect, gives poorer countries the hope of a safer, cleaner and more prosperous future and it's huge significance cannot be over-stated.”

Rushanara Ali MP, Labour Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow, said: "Politicians and climate change negotiators from around the world have finally caught up with the real-world, where there has been a significant shift in public opinion to move away from dirty energy and towards clean solutions.

“The deal is of huge significance, but the work is not over yet. Britain needs to do far more to ensure that progress does not slow down. One way to facilitate this is to lead by example by doing much more to support renewable and clean energy at home."

Graham Stuart MP, Chair of GLOBE International said: “Global agreements are phenomenally difficult to secure so the Paris climate agreement indicates recognition of the seriousness of the risks, the mutual benefits of action and the desire for something both universal and binding.

The deal was only possible thanks to the progress made at national level by so many legislatures, with more than 800 climate laws in place according to the GLOBE climate legislation report earlier this year.

Laurent Fabius and President Hollande deserve great credit as do all those involved in French leadership of the talks.”

Professor Michael Grubb, Professor of International Energy and Climate Change Policy, UCL said: “With this agreement, the rich world has got the universal participation it has sought for 15 years. It may also herald a revolution in international governance. The west must now keep its side of the bargain by delivering steeper emission reductions and the finance agreed.”