Britons have a ‘moral obligation’ to protect the environment, says Rishi Sunak
Britons have a ‘moral obligation’ to protect the environment, says Rishi Sunak
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Britons have a "moral obligation" to protect the environment, Rishi Sunak said as he arrived for COP28, a major world leaders' climate summit in the Middle East.
The Prime Minister said that it was "conservative" to care for the natural world as he sought to dismiss criticism of his decision to water down net zero targets in September.
Speaking to reporters on the flight to Dubai where the UAE is hosting the COP28 summit, Sunak said: "It’s a very strong Conservative instinct to protect what we have for future generations.
"That is a very natural Conservative instinct that is in all things. My approach to the public finances is the same thing.
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"I talk a lot about the moral obligation not to leave our children with debts we’re not willing to deal with. I think the same thing about the environment.
"It’s our moral responsibility to leave our kids’ environment in a better state than we found it, not just for my kids, that’s for everyone."
Sunak said there was a "contract between the living and the unborn" - perhaps for any of his future grandchildren - to look after the environment.
He said: "Every kid cares about it. I can’t visit a single school where someone doesn’t ask you about this, both as a constituency MP or as a parent, or as PM.
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"What most kids also ask about more is nature. They ask about things like plastics and pollution, they all saw Blue Planet. This focus on nature recovery is so important. There’s no way to get to net zero without involving nature."
He added: "My kids are really lucky right. We live, when we’re not in Downing St, in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. I get to take them out to two national parks. I live in between two national parks, the Moors and the Dales.
"That’s what my rare weekends at home are about. It’s spectacular. That’s what they grow up in.
"They’re very fortunate to be able to do that, not everyone is which why part of our nature plan is to improve access for all kids to have access to the countryside, but also to nature closer to home."