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Thanks for joining us bright and early and thanks to the staff at the Natural History Museum for hosting us here before they open their doors to the public this morning as they have done for generations.
We are proud to support your important work. And we are fortunate that this temple of nature has been consecrated here, in our capital city, for the discovery of science and the study and appreciation of the world’s flora and fauna for 4.5 billion years of natural history.
So it’s hard to think of a more inspiring place for us to meet as I call on all of you to help us come together to secure a better future for the future of life on Earth and for every generation to come.
When I visited the museum recently, some of the scientists here reminded me that just five years ago, a Diplodocus would have greeted us in Hintz Hall.
But it is true that we are now dwarfed by the incredible, twenty-five-by-twenty-meter skeleton of the blue whale, the largest animal to have ever existed, even larger than the largest dinosaur.
Forty years ago – following a concerted campaign by schoolchildren and conservation experts alike – maritime nations from around the world, including many of the organizations you represent, gathered at the Metropole Hotel in Brighton and agreed a moratorium on commercial whaling.
In a global move to bring species back from the brink of extinction and find more peaceful ways to appreciate these amazing creatures.
As Minister of the Environment, a few years ago I had the privilege of watching humpback whales from a boat in Nova Scotia’s Petite Passage, and it was a profoundly moving experience.
And while this work is in progress, we should take heart in what we have achieved and our commitment to see it through. Because it seemed impossible until it was done.
As the blue whale population is now recovering, Sir David Attenborough is right to say that ‘Hope’ is an important symbol of what we can achieve.
And because sharing success is so important at a time when we need to renew trust between people and powers around the world, and when we must make the most of the UN nature, we need to strengthen our resolve to work together to solve the many challenges. Conference, CBD COP15 in Montreal.
CINDERELLA OF THE STORY Too long, Cinderella’s time to shine but now we are rightly recognized by all here – as our best chance to secure the decade of work we need.
I am proud that the UK laid the groundwork for success in Montreal through our presidency of COP26 – the climate COP – in Glasgow.
Together, we have for the first time brought nature – land and ocean – from the margins of the global debate to the center of our collective response to the causes and effects of climate change and effective, cost-effective nature-based solutions. Nature – land and ocean from all sources, public, private and philanthropic
Including more global support for the natural wonders that the world depends on, from the Amazon to the Congo Basin, and accelerating the economic changes already underway to ensure that every dollar in our economy moves us closer to our shared goals.
At COP27 in Egypt, I saw the legacy of COP26 come alive and the way countries and companies are now honoring their commitments – including on forests – and building on them.
We are engaging the United Arab Emirates as the host of COP28 next year to be sure
And in all of this, our ability to lead rests on our long-standing commitment – to recognize across the board and then to use every lever we can to leave the environment better than we found it.
From the way we work with the private sector, including the financial sector
– To protect the public good – the way we use public money to support food production. Last week I spoke to our farmers about how we can make the most of our newfound freedoms and our landmark legislation to make timely progress towards meeting our domestic goals of reaching net-zero by 2050 and halting nature’s decline by 2030.
In support of that aim I am delighted to announce that, this spring, we will launch a new multi-million pound fund to create and restore wildlife-rich habitats, with every investment protecting multiple areas including bushland, wetlands and grasslands. Encourage opportunities for private funding by supporting the benefits for nature, climate and people and underfunded projects that give us the biggest bang for our buck.
By doubling UK international climate finance to £11.6 billion and making good on our commitment to spend at least £3 billion on nature, through our newly established £500 million Blue Planet Fund and our £100 million Biodiverse Landscapes Fund.
We are building on decades of experience supporting efforts to address threats to flora and fauna across the globe – beyond climate change alone through the Blue Belt Programme, protecting an area of ocean larger than India around our biodiverse overseas territories. , our world-renowned £39 million Darwin Initiative and the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.
And whether it’s persuading countries to agree to a new, legally binding global treaty to end plastic pollution by 2040 over illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, or supporting efforts to establish a global gold standard for taking nature into account in our economies. . On the world stage and behind the scenes, the UK is leading, co-leading and actively supporting global coalitions committed to securing the greatest possible ambition and achieving the greatest possible impact.
It includes our approach to the UN Nature Conference which started yesterday.
Our world-class UK negotiating team is in the hot-seat building on four years of negotiations, with the support of our world-class scientists from a range of institutions including Kew Gardens and the JNCC.
And later this week, I will lead a team of ministers from Defra, FCDO and the Treasury, working as one to persuade our counterparts around the world to give their negotiators the political support they need to build a strong, ambitious global consensus. A framework for action that will put nature on the path to recovery this decade.
It should include targets to protect at least 30% of the world’s land and at least 30% of global oceans by 2030, and to restore natural systems, recover species populations and prevent extinctions by 2050 with robust reporting and review mechanisms. We will hold all of us accountable to the promises we make and commitments to work in partnership with Indigenous peoples and local communities, who most directly depend on nature and understand it most deeply so we ensure that everyone benefits from seeing this.
And we know that demonstrating our collective desire and ability to close the funding gap for nature is the key to unlocking the ambition we need in Montreal.
And that’s why the UK is working with our friends in Ecuador, Gabon and the Maldives to develop the 10 Point Plan for Financing Biodiversity, an ambitious, credible blueprint for action that increases our chances of achieving consensus. Approaching negotiations in good faith will enable them to see potential solutions to their concerns.
Our plan commands the trust of developed and developing countries spanning five continents – and counting.
We are doing all we can to convince others to support it.
And I hope you too will help us gather more support in this final furlong – and beyond.
After all, we all know that there is a long way between where we stand today and where we stand.
In South Africa’s national parks I have seen how the illegal wildlife trade pits people and wildlife against each other, with devastating consequences for all.
On visits to small island states I hear what it means for communities when their homelands face existential threats.
And evidence of why this is so urgent is now all around us in the knowledge of indigenous peoples and local communities, in science and in events on every continent.
But I truly believe that if we work together to pave the way forward to recovery, we stand to not only avoid the worst impacts but to protect the precious species that will help protect the diversity, abundance and connectivity of life on Earth. Promote the peace and prosperity we all want to see and fundamentally improve the lives of people at home and around the world for generations to come.
The UK is committed to playing our part and to continuing to work with you and our friends around the world to see this through.
The actions you take can have a far-reaching impact and you have the power to inspire others to take action as well.
So once again, I want to thank you for joining us and I urge you to keep up the good work.
Thank you so much.
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