Sweden wants to stop subsidies for fossil fuels

Halfway through the UN Climate Summit in Glasgow, the outside world is trying to determine the quality of the proposed climate measures. Dutch ecologist Bas Eickhout, who chairs the European Parliament’s Environment Committee, believes the best pledges are often signed by a small number of countries.

– The rule of thumb is that if you have a statement supported by more than 150 countries, you know it is not a particularly strong statement. But when many countries do not join, that means the report is challenging, Boss Ikehout told a news conference on Monday.

According to Eickhout, such a deal is suspended until 2023 by subsidies for fossil fuels. Currently, 22 countries have signed up, including Sweden, the United States and the United Kingdom. So far, only seven of the signatories are EU countries, but Eickhout hopes to join more member states.

– Only a few European countries can be seen to have joined so far. But today came the news that my country, the Netherlands, is joining after strong pressure. So now it really shows that there is a big debate, Bas Eickhout said.

The signatories to the report have pledged to prioritize clean energy and suspend new subsidies for fossil fuels if they do not comply with the Paris Agreement’s target of 1.5 degrees Celsius before 2023.

– We will finally discuss subsidies for fossil fuels, said Boss Ikehout.