UK Agency, UK Export Finance, has backed billions’ worth of…
UK Export Finance (UKEF), a UK government agency, has financially supported the aviation industry with billions of £s since the Paris climate agreement was adopted, despite it being a high carbon emitter. The effective subsidy for new airports abroad, aircraft and maintenance comes despite the agency believing the oil-dependent sector is unlikely to begin cutting emissions “materially” before the next decade. UKEF offers a range of loans, insurance and guarantees to help British companies secure business abroad. It said in 2021 that it would not support fossil fuel projects, but it continues to support Rolls-Royce, Airbus, Boeing and British Airways (BA). Almost none come with any climate-related conditions attached. The UKEF could play an important role in decarbonising UK exports and working towards “net zero,” but its continued support for the expansion of the aviation industry today is instead locking in more carbon emissions for decades to come. UKEF says it is working to decarbonise the sector. Between 2016 and 2023, £18.5bn of UKEF’s nearly £36bn in listed financing went to the aerospace sector. Of this, 46% has gone to civil aviation; £3bn went to BA; Airbus £2bn, Boeing £1.7bn and Rolls-Royce £1.3bn. .Tweet UK agency has backed billions’ worth of aviation deals since Paris agreement Government’s UKEF criticised for ‘locking us all into more carbon emissions for decades to come’ with assistance for the sector By Rich Collett-White Thu 6 Apr 2023 A UK government agency has financially supported the high-carbon aviation industry with billions of pounds since the Paris climate agreement was adopted, it can be revealed. The effective subsidy for new airports, aircraft and maintenance comes despite the agency believing the oil-dependent sector is unlikely to begin cutting emissions “materially” before the next decade. UK Export Finance (UKEF), which offers a range of loans, insurance and guarantees to help British companies secure business abroad, ended support for fossil fuel projects two years ago. This key pledge, made by the UK, which hosted the Cop26 climate talks, won praise from green groups. But more than half of the support it has provided since the landmark Paris climate accord was agreed at the end of 2015 has gone to aviation, with Rolls-Royce, Airbus, Boeing and British Airways (BA) taking the lion’s share, according to analysis by DeSmog and the Guardian. Just one of the 62 deals, listed in annual reports, appears to have come with any climate-related conditions attached. The scale of the agency’s exposure to the aviation sector underscores how headline-grabbing pledges to end support for new oil and gas projects are only a partial step towards aligning government policy with net zero targets. Wera Hobhouse, the Liberal Democrats’ climate spokesperson, said: “Getting to net zero needs to be at the heart of any policy decision. We are wasting time we do not have by ignoring this reality and it is having a real, damaging effect on the planet. “The government, by not putting conditions on to contracts that would force high-emitting sectors to decarbonise, are ignoring actions that would help us avoid the grim prospect of missing our climate targets.” Sam Pickard, a research associate at the international development thinktank ODI, called the findings “frustrating”. He said: “UKEF could play an important role in decarboni
