Recommendation 11

We believe that climate and development are closely intertwined. The Integrated Review prioritises climate change “in 2021 and beyond” and suggests using UK ODA to increase the Government’s impact as a “force for good”. We therefore recommend the introduction of a Climate and Development Minister at the FCDO with a focus on adaptation and resilience to ensure alignment between the FCDO’s climate and development strategies during COP26 and beyond. (Paragraph 97) 6 Global Britain in demand: UK climate action and international development around COP26 Summary Global Britain has a great opportunity to be a “force for good” in climate action and international development. The last year has been particularly challenging for low- and middle-income countries and marginalised communities, as they have been bearing the brunt of an increasingly unstable climate, while addressing the impacts of covid-19. The UK’s presidency of COP26 comes at an important time in climate action and development. Decisions taken at COP26 will influence the fates of the UN Sustainable Development Goals and of the Paris Agreement. The list of outstanding tasks for the Government is considerable but the UK has the diplomatic network, influence, funds and soft power to steer international climate action in the right direction and at least start addressing some of the challenges for the Global South during its COP presidency. In our inquiry, we focussed on climate change adaptation (adaptation) and resilience. We heard that adaptation in the most climate-vulnerable countries and communities often lacked sufficient funding and expertise to improve conditions over a longer period of time. We also heard that the countries and groups which are most vulnerable to climate change struggled to access timely and sufficient amounts of funding due to cumbersome application processes and ill-defined purposes of instruments and key terms. Although we welcome the Government’s actions on adaptation and resilience, we