C T Online Desk: A high-profile parliamentary roundtable on “Bangladesh-UK Climate Accord: Priorities for COP28″ has proposed the creation of a parliamentary caucus on climate change ahead of the COP28 to be held in Dubai in November.
The Bangladesh High Commission, London organized the meeting at the UK House of Lords on Thursday
UK ministers and parliamentarians from the House of Lords and the House of Commons along with ministers and parliamentarians from Bangladesh participated in the roundtable and discussed common priorities of Bangladesh and the UK for COP28 in light of the Bangladesh-UK Climate Accord signed in March this year.
This is the first roundtable of its kind between Bangladesh and the UK on climate change at the British parliament, the High Commission said in a statement.
Bangladesh’s Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hassan Chowdhury, former deputy minister of Environment and Forest and current Chair of the Standing Committee on Ministry of Youth and Sports Abdullah Al Islam Jakob, Convenor of Climate Parliament Bangladesh Nahim Razzak, members of the parliament Sheikh Tonmoy and Ayeen Uddin spoke at the roundtable from Bangladesh side.
On the other hand, UK Minister for Housing and Homelessness Felicity Buchan along with a large number of British parliamentarians, including UK Shadow Minister for Climate Change Kerry McCarthy, Shadow Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets Seema Malhotra, Member of House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Select Committee Baroness Rosie Boycott, Member of UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Trade and Investment Lord Popat, Member of UK House of Lords Economic Affairs Select Committee Baroness Susan Kramer, Member of UK All Party Parliamentary Group on Foreign Affairs Baroness Uddin, Member of UK House of Lords Built Environment Select Committee Lord Mawson, Shadow Spokesperson for the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Lord Stevenson, Opposition Whip Lord Sunny Leong and Former member of House of Lords Economic Affairs Select Committee Lord Swraj Paul spoke at the roundtable from the UK side.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneem delivered the opening remarks while Patron of Conservative Friends of India and former UK minister for Energy and Climate Change Baroness Verma, who co-hosted the roundtable, gave the welcome speech.
Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hassan Chowdhury made a four-point proposal for Bangladesh and the UK to jointly pursue at the COP28, including loss and damage, climate financing, investing in Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan and Bangladesh’s transition into a low carbon economy; and strategic investments in clean, renewable and green energy solutions.
Speaking on the occasion, UK Minister for Housing and Homelessness Felicity Buchan praised Bangladesh’s sustained success in climate adaptation leadership, women empowerment, and socio-economic development.
She also praised the Bangladeshi diaspora in the UK for their continuous contribution to the British economy and society.
Convenor of Climate Parliament Bangladesh Nahim Razzak proposed the creation of a parliamentary caucus on climate change ahead of COP28.
Recalling the signing of the historic Bangladesh-UK Climate Accord in Dhaka in March this year during the visit of UK’s Minister for Asia Pacific Anne-Marie Trevelyan, High Commissioner Saida Muna Tasneem recommended that both the countries work together for a plan of action for implementation of the Climate Accord.
The UK parliamentarians highlighted the importance of climate finance and loss and damage fund to address Bangladesh’s vulnerability to climate change. They also urged for increased investment in green infrastructure, agriculture, and food security.
The event was also attended by representatives from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and prominent members of the British-Bangladeshi community.
