A coalition of civil society, faith, health and community organisations has today written to Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen, urging him to use Australia’s Presidency of the Negotiations to shut fossil fuel influence out of this year’s climate summit and commit to a Clean COP31.
Under the shared leadership agreed for COP31, Australia holds the Presidency of the Negotiations with authority over the talks and the draft texts, while Türkiye hosts the summit in Antalya in November and holds the formal COP31 Presidency.
At COP30 in Belém last November, more than 1,600 fossil fuel lobbyists were granted access, roughly one in every 25 participants and the largest share on record, outnumbering every national delegation except host Brazil.
Transparency International found that more than half of all delegates did not fully disclose who they were there to represent, and several major polluters were hosted inside the Presidency’s own delegation. Across the last five COPs, close to 7,000 fossil-fuel-linked participants have taken part in the talks.
“Armies of fossil fuel lobbyists attend the UN Climate Talks often as part of national delegations without disclosing their affiliations. This secrecy and undue influence delays climate action” said Clancy Moore, CEO of Transparency International Australia.
“Minister Bowen can leave a lasting legacy by ensuring the building bricks of integrity and transparency form the foundations of the UN Climate Talks for years to come.”
Independent MP for Bradfield and clean energy expert Nicolette Boele has echoed the call.
“The world’s climate negotiations cannot succeed if fossil fuel lobbyists are allowed to run the show.
“Why does every serious business and organisation require conflict of interest disclosures, but the world’s biggest climate negotiations don’t?
“Transparent, accountable processes lead to good outcomes. Australia should use its leadership role to clean up the COP process.”
“Some actors in the UNFCCC process have interests that run directly counter to its objectives. Governments are saying it too. The time for a formal conflict of interest framework at the UNFCCC is now,” said Brice Böhmer, Climate and Environment Lead at Transparency International.
The letter sets out four commitments it wants Minister Bowen to make:
- excluding fossil fuel lobbyists from Australia’s negotiating delegation;
- requiring public disclosure of any high-polluting industry ties among his Presidency team, delegates and participants;
- establishing a public register of lobbying meetings held by Australia’s Presidency;
- and keeping Australia’s Presidency partnerships free of fossil fuel interests and disclosed openly. It also calls on him to champion a conflict-of-interest policy for all COP participants.
The call occurs as the UN process itself begins to shift. At the mid-year climate session in Bonn in June, the UNFCCC held an Open Dialogue on transparency and conflicts of interest, opened by Executive Secretary Simon Stiell, with a number of Parties speaking in support of stronger integrity safeguards.
Signed,
Transparency International Australia
Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Indonesia
Australian Democracy Network
Friends of the Earth Australia
Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania
ActionAid Australia
Angligreen, Anglican Church Southern Queensland
Better Futures Australia
Peoples Climate Assembly
Flight Free Australia
Intrepid Travel
Independent and Peaceful Australia Network
University of Sydney
Siseap
Creative Climate
Shire of Augusta Margaret River
Asia Pacific Transition Mineral Accountability Working Group (AP-TMA WG)
Sustainify
Climate Emergency Australia
Australian Council for International Development
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation
Oxfam Australia
Market Forces
Comms Declare
