Key Takeaway
Past and present leaders of wealthy nations such as UK and Germany have argued their actions are insignificantOn first hearing, it is a position that sounds reasonable. “When our share of global emissions is less than 1%,” Rishi Sunak argued when he was the UK prime minister in 2023, “how can it be right that British citizens are now being…
Published June 30, 2026 · Category: News
Overview
Past and present leaders of wealthy nations such as UK and Germany have argued their actions are insignificant
On first hearing, it is a position that sounds reasonable. “When our share of global emissions is less than 1%,” Rishi Sunak argued when he was the UK prime minister in 2023, “how can it be right that British citizens are now being told to sacrifice even more than others?”
Details
Sunak is not the only world leader to have cited such figures while delaying cuts to pollution. In 2019, Scott Morrison, Australia’s then prime minister, used his country’s 1.3% of global emissions to reject any suggestion Australia was not “doing our bit” on climate breakdown. In July, the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, pointed to his country’s 2% share of global emissions while supporting loopholes in European climate targets. A few months later the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, followed suit, flagging the EU’s 6% share.
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Source
Originally published at www.theguardian.com.
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What is "‘But we’re just 1% of emissions’: do smaller countries’ climate efforts matter?" about?+
Past and present leaders of wealthy nations such as UK and Germany have argued their actions are insignificantOn first hearing, it is a position that sounds reasonable. “When our share of global emissions is less than 1%,” Rishi Sunak argued when he was the UK prime minister in 2023, “how can it be right that British citizens are now being told to sacrifice even more than others?”Sunak is not the only world leader to have cited such figures while delaying cuts to pollution. In 2019, Scott Morris
Who reported this story?+
This story was reported by The Guardian World.