Ban Ki-moon says UKEF must stop investing in fossil fuels in developing countries

(Guardian, London, 24 February 2019) Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has urged Britain to stop funding fossil fuel projects overseas, in what he said would mark a test of Theresa May’s commitment to act on climate change. The former UN secretary general said he was deeply concerned that the UK’s export credit agency had provided billions of pounds in recent years to support businesses involved in oil and gas schemes around the world. “These figures and policies are hard to reconcile with the UK’s commitments under the Paris agreement,” said Ban, referring to the international climate deal he forged in 2015 as UN Chief. “The time has come for the UK to change course, in the interests of the whole world,” he wrote in a comment for the Guardian. The UK Environmental Audit Committee is currently investigating the scale and impact of UK Export Finance’s financing of fossil fuels in developing countries.