Former French president, Francois Hollande at the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
Former French president, Francois Hollande at the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
Former French president, Francois Hollande at the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National
Former French president, Francois Hollande at the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai. Pawan Singh / The National

Francois Hollande 'not so optimistic' about Cop26 global climate conference


Georgia Tolley
  • English
  • Arabic

Former French president Francois Hollande has said he fears the Cop26 UN climate summit could be a failure because so few countries have submitted their national plans to reduce emissions.

Speaking at Expo 2020 Dubai, Mr Hollande said he was not optimistic about the summit's outcome, despite widespread public recognition of the need for action.

I'm not so optimistic because some countries have not given their commitments for the new Cop26
Francois Hollande,
former French president

Mr Hollande was president of France when the Paris Agreement on climate change was made in 2015. The groundbreaking international treaty was adopted by 195 countries and the EU at Cop21.

Cop26 will take place in Glasgow, Scotland from October 31 until November 12.

Speaking to The National at the World Green Economy Summit at Expo 2020 Dubai, Mr Hollande said more governments needed to engage with the process started by the Paris Agreement.

"I am confident the public are aware of the situation and the high level of warming, but I'm not so optimistic because some countries have not given their commitments for the new Cop26," he said.

"Submitting these commitments is very important to mobilise ahead of the conference, [so that] Cop26 does not appear a disappointment.

"We must strengthen the commitments, and we must encourage these countries to participate, to be adapted to the situation.

"We must also have a system of checking the pledges are respected."

So far only 59 per cent of countries have declared their new or updated climate-related targets, known as Nationally Determined Contributions, or NDCs, for reducing their greenhouse-gas emissions.

These non-binding national plans were at the heart of the Paris Agreement and were designed to help the global community limit warming to well below 2°C, preferably to 1.5°C, compared to pre-industrial levels.

These plans are meant to be refreshed every five years, but 41 per cent of countries have not done so, and the new or updated NDCs only account for about 49 per cent of global greenhouse-gas emissions.

China, the world's largest greenhouse-gas emitter according to data released in May from the Rhodium Group of researchers, proposed its updated NDC targets at the UN’s Climate Ambition Summit in December last year, but has yet to officially submit its revised NDC.

India, the third-largest emitter according to the Global Carbon Atlas, has not submitted an updated climate plan or announced in which year it will achieve net zero emissions.

Meanwhile, the UAE submitted its updated NDCs in December 2020, and outlined plans to limit greenhouse gas emissions to about 240 million tonnes by 2030, down 22.5 per cent compared to the business as usual figure of 310 million tonnes.

Increases in clean power capacity, especially through solar and nuclear energy, are central to the efforts to battle climate change.

The UAE has invested more than $40 billion into nuclear and solar power, increasing the country's clean power

capacity significantly.

In 2015, it was just over 100 megawatts, but is now 2,400MW and should reach 14,000MW by 2030.

Solar power in the UAE - in pictures

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2019 Asian Cup final

Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPurpl%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECo-founders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKarl%20Naim%2C%20Wissam%20Ghorra%2C%20Jean-Marie%20Khoueir%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHub71%20in%20Abu%20Dhabi%20and%20Beirut%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2021%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E12%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%242%20million%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Lampedusa: Gateway to Europe
Pietro Bartolo and Lidia Tilotta
Quercus

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Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?

The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.

A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.

Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.

The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.

When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.

Our legal columnist

Name: Yousef Al Bahar

Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015

- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France

The specs

Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder MHEV

Power: 360bhp

Torque: 500Nm

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Price: from Dh282,870

On sale: now

Ferrari
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Tips for taking the metro

- set out well ahead of time

- make sure you have at least Dh15 on you Nol card, as there could be big queues for top-up machines

- enter the right cabin. The train may be too busy to move between carriages once you're on

- don't carry too much luggage and tuck it under a seat to make room for fellow passengers

If you go

The flights

Fly direct to London from the UAE with Etihad, Emirates, British Airways or Virgin Atlantic from about Dh2,500 return including taxes. 

The hotel

Rooms at the convenient and art-conscious Andaz London Liverpool Street cost from £167 (Dh800) per night including taxes.

The tour

The Shoreditch Street Art Tour costs from £15 (Dh73) per person for approximately three hours. 

The Lowdown

Us

Director: Jordan Peele

Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseqph, Evan Alex and Elisabeth Moss

Rating: 4/5

The%20specs
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The Bio

Favourite Emirati dish: I have so many because it has a lot of herbs and vegetables. Harees  (oats with chicken) is one of them

Favourite place to go to: Dubai Mall because it has lots of sports shops.

Her motivation: My performance because I know that whatever I do, if I put the effort in, I’ll get results

During her free time: I like to drink coffee - a latte no sugar and no flavours. I do not like cold drinks

Pet peeve: That with every meal they give you a fries and Pepsi. That is so unhealthy

Advice to anyone who wants to be an ironman: Go for the goal. If you are consistent, you will get there. With the first one, it might not be what they want but they should start and just do it

Another way to earn air miles

In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.

An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.

“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.

ON%20TRACK
%3Cp%3EThe%20Dubai%20Metaverse%20Assembly%20will%20host%20three%20main%20tracks%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEducate%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Consists%20of%20more%20than%2010%20in-depth%20sessions%20on%20the%20metaverse%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EInspire%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Will%20showcase%20use%20cases%20of%20the%20metaverse%20in%20tourism%2C%20logistics%2C%20retail%2C%20education%20and%20health%20care%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EContribute%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Workshops%20for%20metaverse%20foresight%20and%20use-case%20reviews%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Queen

Nicki Minaj

(Young Money/Cash Money)

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Airev
Started: September 2023
Founder: Muhammad Khalid
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: Generative AI
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
 
Race%20card
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Scores

Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool
Arsenal 1-0 Huddersfield Town
Burnley 1-0 Brighton
Manchester United 4-1 Fulham
West Ham 3-2 Crystal Palace

Saturday fixtures:
Chelsea v Manchester City, 9.30pm (UAE)
Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur, 11.45pm (UAE)

Skoda Superb Specs

Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol

Power: 190hp

Torque: 320Nm

Price: From Dh147,000

Available: Now

Result:

1. Cecilie Hatteland (NOR) atop Alex - 31.46 seconds

2. Anna Gorbacheva (RUS) atop Curt 13 - 31.82 seconds

3. Georgia Tame (GBR) atop Cash Up - 32.81 seconds

4. Sheikha Latifa bint Ahmed Al Maktoum (UAE) atop Peanuts de Beaufour - 35.85 seconds

5. Miriam Schneider (GER) atop Benur du Romet - 37.53 seconds

6. Annika Sande (NOR) atop For Cash 2 - 31.42 seconds (4 penalties)

Updated: October 06, 2021, 2:32 PM