Calls to tax profits made by major fossil fuel companies gathered steam on Tuesday as world leaders addressed the third day of Cop27, calling for tougher action to tackle the planet’s climate crisis.
The idea to tax oil and gas majors was first proposed at the summit in Egypt by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who called for a windfall tax on fossil fuel companies profiting from soaring energy prices, which would be used to help vulnerable nations.
In an attempt to ease concerns that the industrialised world was not listening to climate-vulnerable developing countries, US climate envoy John Kerry explained Washington's commitment to reducing its own gas emissions, saying democratic President Joe Biden will stick to his efforts even if Republicans win the midterm elections on Tuesday.
A Republican victory could be a boon to former president Donald Trump, who had pulled the United States out of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. Mr Biden brought the United States back into the pact. Former president Trump has strongly suggested that he intends to run for the White House in 2024.
Also on Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urged countries to hasten action on climate change.
“The global fossil fuel crisis must be a game changer. So let us not take the 'highway to hell' but let's earn the clean ticket to heaven,” she said, echoing remarks by Mr Guterres on Monday.
On Tuesday, small island nations suffering the worst effects of climate change said they wanted major international oil companies to pay for mounting damage from ocean storms and the rise of sea levels.
Leaders of developing nations sharply rebuked the West and took turns calling for the implementation of previous COP resolutions and for the industrialised world, which is responsible for most gas emissions, to come forward with funds to bankroll their adaptation efforts.
“The oil and gas industry continues to earn almost $3 billion in daily profits,” said Antigua's Prime Minister Gaston Browne, speaking on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.
“It is about time that these companies are made to pay a global carbon tax on their profits as a source of funding for loss and damage,” he said.
“Profligate producers of fossil fuels have benefited from extortionate profits at the expense of human civilisation. While they are profiting, the planet is burning.”
Senegal's President Macky Sall told the conference that poor developing nations in Africa wanted increased funding for adaptation to worsening climate change.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe said: “Those most responsible for the climate crisis must listen and prioritise climate finance to help prevent disasters and help climate victims recover. Commitments we have made and continue to make can only make a difference when we act on them.”
Sri Lanka's president Ranil Wickremesinghe lambasted what he called the “double standards” employed by the world's chief polluters.
“Developed nations should be giving leadership to work on climate challenges rather than abdicating their responsibilities. It is no secret that climate financing has missed the target …. As many developed nations deem it fit to wait on their climate financing contributions, these countries were also on both sides of the Ukraine war and seemed to have no qualms spending for war,” he said.
Citing recent research, Cop27 President Sameh Shoukri told a news conference that while he was encouraged by the resolve to tackle climate change and impressed by energy of young people, half the world will be affected by climate change by 2030 — even if temperatures rise no more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels.
A temperature rise no greater than 1.5 degree Celsius is what world leaders agreed to in Paris in 2015 as their objective, based on scientific consensus.
In contrast, the president of Ghana, Nana Addo, struck a hopeful note, saying Africa, with international help, could be key to the decarbonisation of the world. He cited the large swathes of arable land and a young and innovative population.
“No one wins if Africa loses,” he said.
Another hopeful note came from French President Emmanuel Macron, who flew back to Paris after he addressed the summit on Monday night.
The French leader is meeting on Tuesday with the heads of the country’s most climate-damaging industries to pressure them to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The meeting at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris aims at accelerating the reduction of carbon emissions, a move that requires new technologies and investments worth billions of euros.
The industry represents about 20 per cent of France’s national greenhouse gas emissions.
On Monday, leaders at the two-week UN summit spoke of the need to agree on mechanisms for “loss and damage” funding, under which wealthy nations bankroll measures taken by the most vulnerable countries to mitigate the effects of climate change.
“Those who contributed least to the climate crisis are reaping the whirlwind sowed by others,” said Mr Guterres in an impassioned speech on Monday. “Many are blindsided by impacts for which they had no warning or means of preparation.
“This is why I am calling for universal early warning systems coverage within five years.
“And it is why I am asking that all governments tax the windfall profits of fossil fuel companies. Let’s redirect the money to people struggling with rising food and energy prices and to countries suffering loss and damage caused by the climate crisis.”
In an early success, the summit agreed on Monday to add loss and damage to the agenda, a move that had eluded negotiators for years.
“On addressing loss and damage, this Cop must agree on a clear, time-bound road map reflective of the scale and urgency of the challenge,” the UN chief said. “This road map must deliver effective institutional arrangements for financing.”
Humanity, he said, was on “a motorway to climate hell with our foot on the accelerator”.
The idea of a windfall tax on carbon profits has gained traction in recent months amid sky-high earnings for major oil and gas companies as consumers struggle to pay the rising cost of heating homes and filling cars.
The summit’s first full day on Monday was defined by urgent calls by leaders to slash greenhouse gas emissions as the planet warms and severe weather events become more frequent and destructive.
Scores of presidents, along with thousands of diplomats, climate negotiators, business leaders, activists and journalists descended on the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El Sheikh to take part in discussions and negotiations lasting until November 18.
Former US vice president Al Gore, one of the first leaders to raise the alarm about climate change, framed the question of whether to decarbonise as a “life over death” choice by leaders.
Nigeria’s environment minister Mohammed Abdullahi, along with many others, argued that the action needed to go beyond just cutting emissions. Rich nations most responsible for climate change must help poor nations hit hard by the impacts of climate change, he said.
“The blame game should stop,” he said.
He said his country would be “aggressive” during negotiations about financing and reparations for vulnerable countries.
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
Power: 435hp at 5,900rpm
Torque: 520Nm at 1,800-5,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Price: from Dh498,542
On sale: now
Yuki Means Happiness
Alison Jean Lester
John Murray
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE LOWDOWN
Romeo Akbar Walter
Rating: 2/5 stars
Produced by: Dharma Productions, Azure Entertainment
Directed by: Robby Grewal
Cast: John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
The bio:
Favourite holiday destination: I really enjoyed Sri Lanka and Vietnam but my dream destination is the Maldives.
Favourite food: My mum’s Chinese cooking.
Favourite film: Robocop, followed by The Terminator.
Hobbies: Off-roading, scuba diving, playing squash and going to the gym.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
The specs: Rolls-Royce Cullinan
Price, base: Dh1 million (estimate)
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbo V12
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 563hp @ 5,000rpm
Torque: 850Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 15L / 100km
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
More from Janine di Giovanni
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FINAL RECKONING
Director: Christopher McQuarrie
Starring: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg
Rating: 4/5
Dubai World Cup prize money
Group 1 (Purebred Arabian) 2000m Dubai Kahayla Classic - $750,000
Group 2 1,600m(Dirt) Godolphin Mile - $750,000
Group 2 3,200m (Turf) Dubai Gold Cup – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Turf) Al Quoz Sprint – $1,000,000
Group 2 1,900m(Dirt) UAE Derby – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Dirt) Dubai Golden Shaheen – $1,500,000
Group 1 1,800m (Turf) Dubai Turf – $4,000,000
Group 1 2,410m (Turf) Dubai Sheema Classic – $5,000,000
Group 1 2,000m (Dirt) Dubai World Cup– $12,000,000
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Company%C2%A0profile
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