The likely next German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, announced on Friday that his Christian Democrats (CDU) had successfully reached a deal with the Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens on a multi-billion-euro financial package for defence and infrastructure, reports Tagesspiegel. A climate and transformation fund (KTF) will be allocated €100bn, which will be mentioned in the constitution, the outlet says, adding that the Greens “are very pleased” with the outcome. However, it says the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the Left party have, “unsurprisingly”, criticised the agreement. The government’s planned subsidies are “reducing the pressure for reforms”, according to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ). The CEO of the German energy company Eon, Leonhard Birnbaum, emphasised that the fund should not finance anything in the energy sector that could also be funded by private investment, adds FAZ. Clean Energy Wire reports that the €500bn special fund for infrastructure agreed as part of the deal is intended to bolster civil protection, transport, hospitals, energy, education, science, research and development, care and digitalisation over a period of 12 years. Reuters notes that the final confirmation of the fund will require a two-thirds majority in the parliamentary vote, which is scheduled for Tuesday. Bloomberg says the deal was done in the early hours of Friday morning after a “3am showdown” with the Greens. The New York Times, Financial Times, Times and Guardian all cover the story.

Meanwhile, according to an investigation by Correctiv and iStories, the US, Russia and Germany are holding “closed-door” negotiations on resuming Russian energy supplies to Europe on the condition of an end to Russia’s war against Ukraine. The outlet says this could mean that Europe would be “forced” to buy Russian fossil fuels. It says the negotiations reportedly concern the future of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines, the Druzhba pipeline and the ownership of Russian oil company Rosneft’s assets in Germany. In contrast, Bloomberg reports: “[W]hile some traders are speculating that Russian supply will increase, many expect limited volumes to return, if any. The European Union is working on plans, albeit delayed, to end its dependence on Russian energy by 2027.”

In other news from Germany, Euractiv reports on the “green policy wonks in Germany’s Christian Democrats”. A second Euractiv article says Germany is close to hitting its 2030 climate goal of cutting emissions to 65% below 1990 levels, according to the German environment agency (UBA). Bloomberg says UBA “warned the incoming government against tossing out a ban on fossil-fuel heating systems, with the nation poised to narrowly miss its 2030 climate targets in the housing and transport sectors”. Finally, Reuters reports that a German court will today resume hearing “a landmark” case brought by a Peruvian farmer who argues that the German energy company RWE’s emissions contributed to the melting of Andean glaciers, increasing the flood risk to his home. 

New Canadian prime minister Mark Carney has “wasted little time in removing a potent point of attack for the Conservatives”, CBC News reports. It says Carney signed a directive after being sworn in on Friday to end Canada’s consumer carbon tax from 1 April, a scheme that had been implemented by his Liberal predecessor Justin Trudeau. The broadcaster says that opposition leader Pierre Poilievre has campaigned on a pledge to “axe the tax”, adding: “Carney had previously supported a carbon pricing scheme, but said during his bid for the Liberal leadership that the current policy had become ‘too divisive’ and promised to kill the policy.” The Globe and Mail calls the decision Carney’s “first big move” and quotes him saying: “This will make a difference to hard-pressed Canadians but it is part of a much bigger set of measures that this government is taking to ensure that we fight against climate change.” It notes that Canadians who have been getting rebates under the carbon tax scheme “will continue to receive a rebate in the next quarter”. According to Le Monde, Carney “said addressing climate change will be a top priority” despite scrapping the tax.

Three former heads of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “sounded an alarm Friday, saying rollbacks proposed by EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin endanger the lives of millions of Americans and abandon the agency’s dual mission to protect the environment and human health”, the Associated Press reports. The former heads include two that served under Republican presidents, it notes. The newswire quotes Christine Todd Whitman, who led the EPA under George W Bush, saying: “We all deserve to have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. If there’s an endangerment finding to be found anywhere, it should be found on this administration because what they’re doing is so contrary to what the Environmental Protection Agency is about.” Inside Climate News also has the story. CNBC says the Trump administration has “sen[t] a clear message to the oil and gas industry: ‘you’re the customer’”. For Bloomberg, columnist Mark Gongloff writes: “The agency is abandoning its mission in a misguided effort to boost an economy it will only end up hurting.” Time magazine covers “what legal experts say about Trump’s sweeping EPA deregulation”. The Los Angeles Times assesses what the EPA changes could mean for California’s climate efforts. Politico looks at “Trump’s climate purge” in the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is planning to cancel the lease at a government laboratory in Hawaii that is “connected to the Mauna Loa Observatory, where scientists gather data from atop a volcano to produce the famed Keeling Curve” of CO2 levels, the Washington Post reports. It adds: “The observatory itself is not on the list of potential closures, but staff in the Hilo lab work to maintain it, according to the lab’s website.” The New York Times also has the story.

In other news from the US, BBC News reports: “UN aid agencies have been sent questionnaires by the US asking them to state if they have ‘anti-American’ beliefs or affiliations…Other questions ask aid agencies to ensure no project includes any elements of DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) or anything related to climate change.” The Financial Times says: “US multinationals purge website references to climate change.” And Inside Climate News says some US scientists are “stick[ing] with the IPCC, despite the administration pulling out”. 

At least 39 people have been killed by extreme weather events across the US over the weekend, the Associated Press reports, including fires, tornadoes and dust storms. Axios says: “Climate change is altering the environment in which severe thunderstorms and tornadoes form. Studies show that while some ingredients, such as humidity and atmospheric instability, are likely to increase with a warming climate, others may do the opposite…When the right mix of ingredients are present, as they have been during the past few days, climate change may lead to larger severe weather outbreaks.” The New York Times also has the story.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to meet senior figures at the UK’s biggest regulators covering areas such as energy and planning in Downing Street today, as she aims to “set targets for cutting red tape and growing the economy”, the Times reports. It says: “Some of the changes, particularly those relating to environmental regulation, are expected to speed up delivery of major infrastructure projects such as the long-delayed Lower Thames Crossing.” BBC News reports: “Environmental guidance, including hundreds of pages on bats, is expected to be reviewed, while environmental permits for some low-risk and temporary projects will be removed.” The Guardian says: “High on the chancellor’s target list are the costly hold-ups to major infrastructure projects when environmental concerns are raised…One proposal will be to make it easier for private sector contractors to obtain environmental permits, with just one agency in charge of the system, and permits being scrapped for low-risk or temporary projects.” Frontpage coverage in the Daily Telegraph carries the print headline: “Reeves cuts green rules in drive for growth.” The article then says that of “60 measures to cut red tape and boost the economy…at least three [are] environmental changes”. Reuters also has the story. The Guardian reports comments by Adrian Ramsay, co-leader of the Green Party, criticising “when Labour talks about growth versus nature”. The Financial Times interviews Julia Pyke, the co-head of the planned new nuclear plant at Sizewell C in Suffolk and quotes her saying: “It’s a tough gig, developing big infrastructure projects in the UK.”

Separately, the i newspaper lists the “seven cuts Reeves could make in spring statement”, including the government pausing farm payments under the sustainable farming incentive. It also says there “have been reports that the government is considering cuts to GB Energy”. The Times reports on the “farmers reeling” over the farm payment pause and carries a comment by columnist Jenni Russell saying it “will damage the environment”. The Daily Mail says prime minister Keir Starmer is “facing cabinet revolt” over his “plan to take an axe to the bloated British state”. It reports: “The prime minister has been told that he could face frontbench resignations, with friends of [energy secretary Ed] Miliband warning that even he ‘would walk’ if the £8bn budget for his beloved GB Energy renewable energy investment body is targeted by chancellor Rachel Reeves.” The newspaper quotes an anonymous “Labour MP” saying: “Plenty of people in No 10 would be happy for Ed to go because they don’t think all this green stuff is working in the Red Wall seats.” BusinessGreen reports that 70% of the British public believe the UK “should be a global leader on climate action”.

A shift to regional electricity pricing would leave households in London subsidising cheap bills in Scotland, according to comments by the head of energy firm RWE reported by the Times. It says; “Tom Glover, UK country chairman of the German energy group RWE, said it was problematic that people living near windfarms, such as those in northern Scotland, would enjoy much cheaper electricity when windfarms were funded by levies on all consumers across Britain.” The Times also carries a comment by Greg Jackson, head of energy firm Octopus, titled: “Ignore the lobbyists – regional energy prices will cut bills.” Meanwhile, the Guardian says the steel industry is calling for capped energy prices “as companies grapple with the fallout from Donald Trump’s trade war”. Reuters reports: “Earlier this week, the sector was hit by a 25% tariff on exports to the US that make up around 9% of the value of Britain’s steel exports.” The Daily Telegraph also has the story.

Separately, the Press Association says the car industry is calling for policy changes to boost demand for electric cars: “Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), warned of the danger of ‘de-industrialisation’ if more support for EV purchases is not introduced.” The Times also reports on the car industry’s efforts to boost EV sales. Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail report on claims that EVs are “so heavy they can smash through motorway barriers”. The Daily Telegraph also reports on the “risky assumptions underpinning Ed Miliband’s green job promise”. BBC News reports: “The history of Grangemouth has been built on fossil fuels – but now its future depends on its reinvention as Scotland’s green energy industrial hub.” The i newspaper reports on the UK’s “solar revolution”, mapping 3,500 “projects in the pipeline”. The Times reports on calls to harness tidal energy in the Severn estuary. And yet another Daily Telegraph story claims windfarms “could kill off Britain’s endangered pearl mussels”.

There is ongoing coverage of Ed Miliband, the UK’s energy secretary, who has been on a three-day visit to China. According to the Guardian, the talks are “as part of [a] plan to create [a] global axis working in favour of climate action”. The newspaper says he arrived in Beijing on Friday “for three days of talks with top Chinese officials, including discussions on green technology supply chains, coal and the critical minerals needed for clean energy”. It adds that this is the first visit to Beijing by a UK energy secretary in eight years. The Press Association reports: “By refreshing an outdated 10-year-old clean energy partnership with China, the UK government hopes to co-operate with the country on emerging technologies such as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage while sharing its own expertise on phasing out coal use.” It says the UK has invited Chinese ministers to London later this year “to continue talks”. Reuters says: “Miliband will ‘engage frankly’ on Britain’s concerns about forced labour, human rights and freedoms in Hong Kong and China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, the British government said.” The Daily Telegraph claims – without supporting evidence – that Miliband “had originally planned to steer clear of directly addressing China’s coal use”.

A “red weather alert” was issued on Friday in the flood-hit Italian region of Tuscany, Agence France-Presse reports. It says famous sites in Florence closed early. The newswire adds: “Scientists have repeatedly warned that man-made climate change amplifies the risk of natural disasters such as floods.” BBC News says there were floods and landslides in the region, with “almost a month’s worth of rain” in Florence on Friday morning. It adds: “Europe is the fastest-warming continent – which not only brings much more frequent and intense heatwaves, but also more extreme rainfall.” The Associated Press also has the story.

German lawmakers are seeking to block plans for a new windfarm that could “provide power for 400,000 households from 2028” over concerns that suppliers would include Guangdong-based wind turbine manufacturer Mingyang, Nikkei Asia reports, citing risks such as “outside political influence”, “espionage through the use of sensors” and “disruption of energy supply”. Separately, Bloomberg reports that Pakistan has “lowered the rate it pays for electricity from solar users, after a massive boom had made the nation the third-largest destination for Chinese panels”. And the Financial Times Europe Express newsletter says that EU tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles will have limited benefits for European carmakers, according to analysis from the Centre for European Reform.

In other news, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reports that scientists in China have developed a nuclear battery that “could potentially last for a century without a charge”. Business news outlet Jiemian publishes an article by Wang Keke, analyst with Peking University’s Institute of Energy, saying that nuclear energy is increasingly viewed as a “potential” solution for the sustainable development of data centers. A commentary in the print edition of the Communist party-affiliated newspaper People’s Daily says that high renewable energy capacity and high consumption are the “two wings of high-quality new energy development”, adding that a renewables “price mechanism” is key to increasing energy consumption and “digitalisation” is key to improving renewables integration with the grid. The Guardian covers the successes of water and soil conservation in a part of China once considered the “most eroded place” on Earth.

Companies are being “intimidated” into dropping climate goals and oil firms are “on the wrong side of history”, according to comments by former US secretary of state and climate envoy John Kerry reported by the Financial Times. The newspaper says Kerry also criticised the head of Saudi Aramco, who claimed at the CERAWeek conference last week that the energy transition was not going to happen. It quotes Kerry saying: “If the head of a major fossil fuel company wants to pretend it isn’t going to happen, have at it. But they’re on the wrong side of history. And history is not just waiting to prove it. [It’s] proving it right now. This transition is happening.” Kerry is quoted by the Wall Street Journal saying that the US “risks ceding control of the global energy market to China if it continues to turn its back on renewable energy”.The New York Times reports under the headline: “Hope for a Trump energy boom is marred by anxiety about tariffs.” Bloomberg says the CERAWeek conference was “overshadowed” by falling oil prices and “tariff threats”. It quotes oil magnate Harold Hamm saying: “When you get below the cost of supply, you can’t ‘drill, baby, drill’.” The Guardian says “beneath the bravado” at the conference, was “Trump-induced anxiety”. Bloomberg says US president Donald Trump will “meet with top oil executives at the White House” this week “as he charts plans to stoke domestic energy production, even as the industry grows uneasy about falling crude prices and tariff uncertainty”. The Financial Times interviews Sultan al-Jaber, head of oil giant Adnoc and COP28 president, quoting him describing himself as a “climate realist” and saying: “It’s time to make energy great again.”

In related comment, an editorial in the Financial Times says Trump’s economic agenda is “incoherent”. One of the examples it cites is that while Trump “wants the US shale sector to ‘drill, baby, drill’”, he also wants crude prices to fall “to $50 a barrel or lower”, which “would be uneconomical for US producers”. Bloomberg columnist Javier Blas similarly writes: “Delight over Trump’s election has passed for [oil] executives worried about falling prices.” In the New York Times, author Quinn Slobodian has a comment titled: “Does Trump want America to look more like Saudi Arabia?”

In a comment for the Sun, UK chancellor Rachel Reeves says she will “go where no chancellor has gone before to cut the red tape clogging up Britain’s economic engine”. She says: “Today we are releasing businesses from excessive environmental paperwork holding back investment and failing to protect nature. The people building the homes and infrastructure we so desperately need shouldn’t be forced to comply with hundreds of pages of special protections for bats, which go way beyond any legal requirements.” An editorial in the Sun titled “net-zero growth” says Reeves is “right to try to slash the burdensome red tape” before adding: “But here’s a couple of bigger ideas for the chancellor to add to her growth wish list: Axe Ed Miliband’s ruinous net-zero targets.” [The UK’s net-zero target was legislated in 2019 by former Conservative prime minister Theresa May.]

For the Sunday Times, former Spectator editor Fraser Nelson writes: “Starmer has been struck by how many energy companies tell him they could build new generators in a couple of years, but would need 10 years to battle the paperwork and regulations. It’s perverse, he thinks, that green regulations stop him achieving his green goals.” For the Daily Mail, climate-sceptic columnist Andrew Neil calls once again for net-zero to be rolled back.

An editorial in Saturday’s Daily Telegraph lists net-zero, along with the “welfare state”, among issues that it says have “effectively blocked growth”. An editorial in the Sunday Telegraph claims – without evidence – that “there is an obvious link between the tax rises in the autumn budget and Ed Miliband’s rush towards net-zero and January’s fall in GDP”. There is further commentary in the Daily Telegraph attacking net-zero. Conservative peer Charles Moore – who has close links to climate-sceptic lobby group, the Global Warming Policy Foundation – claims that the UK political consensus on climate change is “about to collapse”. Columnist Matthew Lynn blames climate action for weak growth. And Diana Furchtgott-Roth – a director at the right-wing Heritage Foundation – calls Trump’s deregulatory agenda “a dagger in the heart of net-zero”. 

Finally, the Spectator gives space to the climate-sceptic author Rupert Darwall, senior fellow at the National Center for Energy Analytics, to argue in favour of fracking in the UK. And, in the Daily Telegraph, shale gas chief executive Francis Egan argues in favour of fracking for shale gas.

An editorial in Le Monde says that the EU “must pursue its environmental objectives and investments in clean energies”, even as “the Trump administration is increasing its attacks on science and environmental issues are being marginalised by those of defense and economy in France”. It says clean energy “helps reduce our dependence on Russia and the US” and adds that “without climate security, security in Europe will be impossible”. A second editorial from Le Monde criticises Trump’s “staggering offensive against science”. It adds: “The Orwellian dimension of the move came to light with the publication of a list of terms that must no longer be used in research and working papers – climate, pollution, injustice, reference to gender or race.”

A 5,700-year record of cyclones in the Caribbean identifies “increasing storminess” in the south-western Caribbean. The authors use a sediment core from the Great Blue Hole – a marine sinkhole offshore Belize – to expand existing data on Caribbean cyclones from instrumental monitoring, historical documentation and “palaeotempestological records”. According to the paper, extrapolating into the 21st century indicates “an unprecedented increase in tropical cyclone frequency, attributable to the industrial age warming”.