There is widespread UK media attention to a speech given in Edinburgh yesterday by Keir Starmer, the leader of the UK’s opposition Labour party. BBC News reports that Starmer reiterated his pledge to end new North Sea oil and gas exploration, if his party wins the next election. According to the outlet, Starmer will not grant licences to explore new fields in the North Sea, but he will honour any licences that exist when the election takes place – likely including the “controversial” new Rosebank development. The outlet adds that Labour plans to launch a new Scotland-based, publicly owned firm called GB Energy which “could end up providing up to £600m per year to local councils to invest in green infrastructure and a further £400m annually in low interest loans for community projects.” Starmer also announced the “British jobs bonus” scheme, the Guardian reports. Under the scheme, the government would “allocate £500m a year for each of the first five years of government, to provide capital grants to companies in low-carbon industries, including wind and solar energy, hydrogen and carbon capture and storage”, the paper says. It adds that the scheme would “particularly benefit industrial heartlands and coastal communities, and areas that have past or current coal, oil and gas industries”. According to the Financial Times, the scheme aims to deliver 65,000 jobs by 2030. The Times adds: “Onshore wind farms have dried up over the past decade after residents were given greater powers to object, in a de facto ban that Rishi Sunak has not reversed. Starmer said that under Labour local areas would lose this veto.” BusinessGreen notes that Starmer’s speech “coincided with the publication of the 22-page Green Prosperity Plan document itself”. The Herald reports that Starmer pledged to make Scotland “the beating heart of Britain”, by basing GB Energy in Scotland and pledging to create 50,000 green jobs there. Guardian analysis says that “taking the launch to Edinburgh showed a willingness to face head-on Labour’s energy dilemma: how to shift the UK economy to a low-carbon footing, as net-zero demands, without destroying high-quality jobs in carbon-intensive industries”. It adds that the Tories have “redoubled their attacks” on Labour. Elsewhere, CityAM reports that Starmer has “failed to win over the North Sea industry”, adding that “his decision has been painted in some media outlets as a U-turn or compromise measure”. The Daily Express says Starmer was “ridiculed” over his proposed ban on oil and gas exploration and the Press Association says that “Scottish first minister Humza Yousaf has said Labour cannot be trusted on clean energy”. (See Carbon Brief’s analysis published yesterday showing that the “UK would need less imported gas under a Labour government”. Also see Carbon Brief’s factcheck of misleading claims by leading Conservative politicians about Labour’s North Sea oil pledge.)

In other UK news, the Guardian covers a report by Citizens Advice which finds that insulating housing “could add almost £40bn to the economy by the end of the decade by cutting energy use and improving health”. The paper continues: “Home heating bills could fall by £24bn if the efficiency of 13m homes was upgraded to at least a C rating under the energy performance certificate (EPC) scheme by 2030.” The i newspaper and Press Association also cover the report.

Elsewhere, BBC News reports that “the government is planning to remove a ban on opening new coal mines from a bill that is going through Parliament”. The outlet adds that ministers “also plan to drop changes to the bill which would have enabled small community energy projects to sell electricity directly to local homes”. Separately, the Times reports that “a Tory peer and Swampy are joining forces to establish a new climate group that rejects the radical protest methods used by Just Stop Oil and Extinction Rebellion”. And 62% of people told a YouGov poll commissioned by the Sun that “getting prices down is more important than achieving carbon neutral status by midway through this century”. (The full polling results, which is far more nuanced than the Sun is reporting, can be seen via this YouGov PDF.)

Sea surface temperatures around the north-east coast of England and west of Ireland are “smashing records for late spring and early summer”, according to the Guardian. The newspaper continues: “The Met Office said global sea surface temperatures in April and May reached an all-time high for those months, according to records dating to 1850, with June also on course to hit record heat levels.” BBC News reports that water temperatures are up to 3-4C higher than average for the time of the year, adding: “The Met Office says the reason is partly human-caused climate change.” According to the Press Association, the North Sea is “currently experiencing one of the most extreme heatwaves on Earth, being 4-5C higher than its usual temperature for this time of year”. The heatwave has been classed as category four – meaning “extreme” – by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, it adds. The New Scientist reports that the North Atlantic has experienced record-breaking temperatures for the past three months, with average surface temperatures peaking on 17 June at 23C. The Daily Telegraph says that the heatwave could attract more basking sharks, jellyfish and algal blooms. The Times and Sky News also cover the story.

In other UK news, the i newspaper quotes a government advisor who warns that “the UK’s planning system is not prepared for climate change and could lead to people losing their homes or facing astronomical costs in the future”. Separately, the Daily Express covers a warning from the National Trust that climate change is the “single biggest threat” to Britain’s landscapes and historic houses.

EU energy ministers who have gathered to “agree an overhaul of the bloc’s energy market” are fighting efforts by Poland to extend subsidies for coal power plants until 2028, the Financial Times reports. The paper says: “Sweden, which at present chairs the EU’s rotating presidency, has allowed an exemption to be added to a reform of the bloc’s energy market at the request of Warsaw. This exemption would permit coal power plants to receive state support for providing a steady flow of energy when other forms of energy were not available — a move that was promptly criticised by multiple ministers.” According to the Guardian, Luxembourg’s energy minister described Sweden’s proposal as “astonishing”. Separately, the Financial Times reports that energy ministers have failed to approve an overhaul on the EU electricity market due to “disagreements between France and Germany on state aid for power producers”. Reuters reports that today, ministers will attempt to “agree a common position on the bloc’s landmark law to restore deteriorating natural habitats”. 

This comes as Reuters covers a joint report by World Meteorological Organization and European Union scientists, which finds that Europe is the fastest-warming continent on the planet, having warmed by twice the global average since the 1980s. “Europe’s 2022 summer heat record not a ‘one-off’”, the newswire adds.

US climate envoy John Kerry said on Monday that the US and China must “create a partnership” to address climate change “without allowing their differences on other issues to get in the way”, reports Reuters.  Separately, the Washington Post writes that secretary of state Antony Blinken expressed his talks with Chinese president Xi Jinping and top Chinese officials as “very candid, very in-depth” and “constructive” on Monday and “raised the prospect” of cooperating on key global challenges, including “stemming climate change”. It adds that the discussions are expected to lay the groundwork for subsequent visits to China by treasury secretary Janet Yellen and the possibility of future visits by commerce secretary Gina Raimondo and climate envoy John Kerry.

Meanwhile, Euractiv writes that global leaders this week will meet in Paris “with ambitions to reimagine global financing for a new era shaped by climate change, as a cascade of crises swamps debt-burdened countries”. One of the major debates at the summit is the scale of “existing debts”, the article says, adding that this will also draw attention to China, which has emerged as a “significant lender” to African nations, but has shown hesitance in engaging with the established framework for restructuring debt. 

In other China-related news, the EU faces a challenging task in reducing its reliance on photovoltaic modules and other solar components manufactured in China, says Asia Times. According to the consultancy McKinsey, China manufactures approximately “80% of the world’s solar silicon, 95% of its solar ingots and wafers, 75% of its solar cells, and 70% of its solar modules”, the article adds. Katrina Hamlin, a Reuters editor, argues in a “Breakingviews” column that Chinese automakers will “road test western protectionism”. Chinese electric car brands, led by BYD, are “solidifying their dominant position in the domestic market”, surpassing global competitors such as Tesla and Volkswagen, the newswire adds. The Wire China focuses on how the Chinese automakers became “a dominant force” in the EV industry. Chinese financial media outlet Yicai writes that Chinese energy conglomerate China Energy Engineering is “linking arms” with Saudi Arabian investment firm Aljomaih Holding on “renewable energy projects in the Middle East and around the world”. Bloomberg’s Green Daily newsletter writes that China’s “giant” aluminium industry is circumventing government restrictions on one of its most “carbon-intensive” industries by establishing new facilities in Indonesia. Finally, the Chinese newspaper bjnews.com writes that, starting from Wednesday, high temperatures will return to Beijing, and El Niño may lead to less rainfall in Beijing this summer. And China Dialogue carries a feature under the headline: “What is China’s role at the Paris summit for a new global financial pact?”

Nearly 100 people have died in India from “heat-aggravated conditions” across the states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, the Guardian reports. It continues: “The deaths in Uttar Pradesh almost all occurred in one district, Ballia, which baffled officials as many other areas had been equally scorched by the high temperatures. The state’s health minister, Brajesh Pathak, said it had opened an investigation into the cause of death of ‘so many people’ in Ballia.” BBC News reports that temperatures in Uttar Pradesh have ranged between 42C-47C over the past week. “The majority of deaths attributed to the heatwave have been among people over the age of 60, prompting officials to urge older people to stay at home until temperatures cool,” the Daily Telegraph adds. Outlets including the Associated Press, Reuters, Al Jazeera, the Times of India and Bloomberg also cover fatalities from the heatwave.

Elsewhere, the Financial Times reports that India’s minister for power and renewable energy has warned that “US and European efforts to subsidise domestic renewable energy industries are tantamount to western ‘protectionism’ and will hold back developing countries’ climate ambitions”. And Mint reports that “India is preparing the groundwork for its own carbon border tax to strike back against a similar move by the European Union”, according to people aware of discussions in the government.

A number of newspapers carry comment reacting to Keir Starmer’s energy plan, as revealed in a speech yesterday (see above). “While Labour now insists that it will not revoke licences for oil and gas exploration granted before it assumes power, it persists with a policy that will fatally damage an industry already reeling from government mismanagement,” says an editorial in the Times. Labour’s plans not to revoke such permits should give oil explorers “the confidence to press ahead” in the coming months “with large new projects in advanced planning stages,” reports the Financial Times Lex column, as well as offering “yet another reason for oil and gas investors to do some exploration of their own – outside of UK territory.” For the i newspaper, chief political commentator Paul Waugh writes (citing, in passing, Carbon Brief analysis): “Starmer’s consideration is that if he were to retrospectively tear up such fossil-fuel licences, it could have a chilling effect on his own plans to reassure the private sector that his government would be a trusted partner on other licences or auctions for renewable energy.”

Elsewhere, right-leaning newspapers use Starmer’s speech to continue their attacks on net-zero policies. An editorial in the Sun says: “The Sun has long argued that Britain will not back Net Zero policies which make us poorer. Why don’t politicians listen?” The Sun also gives space to the omnipresent climate-sceptic commentator Ross Clark who says: “All the march to net-zero will do is add zeros to your bills – and that is going to cause mass resistance.” For the Daily Telegraph, former Labour MP Tom Harris says: “How much will it cost, because the notion that it will be entirely cost-free is for the birds? How much inconvenience will we suffer in our daily lives? What changes are we being asked to make to accommodate our leaders’ ambitions?” Over a full page in the Daily Mail, Richard Littlejohn says Starmer and Labour’s shadow energy and climate secretary Ed Miliband “appear quite happy” to sacrifice more the estimated 150,000 jobs that depend directly or indirectly on the North Sea. He continues: “The claim that the slack will be taken up by new jobs in clean energy is at best wishful thinking, at worst risible nonsense.” [In May, the Climate Change Committee calculated that the transition to net-zero could lead to 135,000-725,000 net new jobs created in sectors, such as renewable energy generation, retrofitting and electric vehicles. Finally, in the Daily Telegraph, climate-sceptic farmer Jamie Blacket warns that Starmer’s plans to expand onshore wind will lead to “grinding of teeth at a metropolitan socialist putting large hands on small rural maps, in a top-down plan that favours big business and blights many much-loved landscapes”.

Endangered southwestern willow flycatchers in southern California have adapted their DNA to meet the challenges of climate change, new research suggests. The study compares the entire DNA sequence of wild flycatcher populations in southern California to museum specimens collected from 1888-1909 near San Diego. It finds a shift in the DNA of the wild birds linked to coping with climate factors such as dew point temperature and rainfall. The results “represent one of the few studies to document climate adaptation in a wild population”, the authors say.