However, the Norwegian delegation chooses a far more climate-friendly solution.
Scottish media claim that several hundred private jets arrive in Glasgow in connection with the barely two-week climate summit (COP26) which started on Sunday.
Scotland’s best-selling tabloid newspaper Daily Record & Sunday Mail cites aviation sources who have confirmed that more than 400 private jets are carrying around 1,000 world leaders, business leaders and their staff to the Glasgow climate talks.
The online newspaper receives confirmation that the Norwegian delegation, including Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Minister of Climate and Environment Espen Barth Eide, travels far more environmentally friendly than many of his political colleagues from other countries.
– The delegation flew with regular scheduled flights, confirms communications manager at the Prime Minister’s office, Anne Kristin Hjukse, in an email to Nettavisen.
Also read: Støre before the climate summit: – We need commitments
Facts about the UN climate summit in Glasgow
* The Glasgow Climate Negotiation Meeting will be held from 31 October to 12 November. The UK and Italy are hosting.
* The meeting was supposed to be held last year, but was postponed due to the pandemic.
* Over a hundred heads of state and government are expected to be present on 1 and 2 November.
* Almost all countries in the world are participating in the negotiations. In addition, organizations, press people and business representatives are present.
* The total number of participants will probably be around 25,000.
The Glasgow summit is formally the 26th meeting of the parties to the countries that have signed the UN Climate Convention.
* Referred to as COP26. The abbreviation stands for Conference of the Parties. Corresponding meetings have been held almost every year since 1995.
Ahead of the summit, a large number of countries have updated and tightened their voluntary climate targets in line with the Paris Agreement.
(Kilder: COP26, BBC, The Guardian, NTB)
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– Fantastic with personal attendance
BBC also highlights the number 400 as a possible estimate of the number of private aircraft arriving at the summit. In this connection, the British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss was asked whether it was strictly necessary for world leaders to appear in person at the summit in Glasgow.
Foreign Minister Truss says it is “fantastic” that so many world leaders are attending the summit.
“When the negotiations really tighten up, and when you want to look someone in the eye and talk to them face to face, personal attendance is required,” Truss told BBC Breakfast on Monday morning.
– The world leaders are facing some tough decisions. They have to commit to things they do not necessarily want to commit to when they arrive at the summit. That is why it is absolutely crucial that people meet face to face, says Truss.
Also read: One of these countries has emitted twice as much greenhouse gas as the other country
– More convincing if they did not come in private jets
About a hundred of the private jets are believed to carry negotiating delegations from Europe over relatively short distances. While about 300 private flights will be long-haul flights that can take up to 20 hours.
“Any leader from rich countries or companies on their way to Glasgow to explain to developing countries that we can not afford to keep the promise we made to them in previous negotiations would be far more convincing if they did not arrive by private plane,” said Green Peace chief researcher. Great Britain, Doug Parr, to Sunday Mail.
Also read: The UN climate summit COP26 is underway
The Press Group Transport and Environment also has major objections to the fact that so many climate delegates choose to use private aircraft as a means of transport for the UN climate summit.
– An ordinary private plane, and then we are not talking about Air Force One, emits two tons of CO2 per hour during flight. It can not be stressed enough how bad private jets are for the environment. It’s the worst way to travel. Our research indicates that most flights could have been easily completed with regular scheduled flights, says Matt Finch at Transport and Environment to the same newspaper.
Also read: Prince Charles will give the opening speech at COP26
– Private jets are very prestigious, but it is difficult to avoid the hypocrisy of using it when at the same time claiming that you are fighting against climate change, he says.
To put it in context, the total carbon footprint of an ordinary citizen, including everything they consume and wherever they travel, is about eight tonnes a year. So a business stop or a politician who flies a long-haul route with a private plane, will burn more CO2 than very many ordinary people do in a whole year, says Finch.
Also read: Predict private jet boom: – This is completely hollow in the hat
– Climate hypocrites
Right-wing populists know how to take advantage of the fact that many world leaders choose to use private jets for the important climate summit in Glasgow.
– Every world leader or official who arrives at COP26 in a private plane is a climate hypocrite. That is a fact, writes Brexit king Nigel Farage in one Twitter message the same day the climate summit started.
Also read: Crown Prince Haakon flew scheduled flights to Davos
Prince Charles, who will give the opening speech at COP26, has this weekend received some criticism on social media for using private jets for the G20 summit in Rome and the climate conference in Glasgow. In comparison, our own royal family usually travels by scheduled flight. Crown Prince Haakon, for example, attracted attention when it became known that he traveled by scheduled plane to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos in 2019. At that time, it was assumed that about 1500 private planes arrived at the summit in Davos.
– As a general rule, the royal family always travels by scheduled aircraft, said communications manager at the Palace, Guri Varpe, to The online newspaper that time.
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