Why Scotland has taken a high profile at COP28 Dubai summit - Angus Robertson

Global climate action must be a priority for all countries, which is why it has been good to see Scotland take such a high profile at the COP28 world climate conference in Dubai.

King Charles III makes his opening address at the World Climate Action Summit at Cop28 in Dubai, calling on world leaders and climate delegates for "transform-ational action" to combat climate change. Picture: Chris Jackson/PA Wire

Leaders from around the globe have been at the 28th annual annual United Nations “Conference of the Parties” that signed up to the original UN climate agreement in 1992.

First Minister Humza Yousaf and Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero & Just Transition, Màiri McAllan, have led a fantastic delegation of Scottish policymakers, businesses, academics, campaigners and more.

The First Minister joined global leaders to set out Scotland's ambitions and objectives for COP28 with his first engagement at the official opening of the new Heriot-Watt Dubai Campus with His Majesty King Charles III, showcasing Scotland's influential higher education sector, known the world over for excellence.

Scotland is committed to acting with the next generation and with nations in the Global South to tackle climate change. That’s why Humza Yousaf also met with Global South partners and youth activists to establish greater ties and cooperation, and to announce funding from the world-leading Climate Justice Fund.

The fund focuses on compensating ‘loss and damage’ in communities most affected by climate change. This is necessary as, to tackle the issue of climate change together, the views and needs of those typically marginalised in such communities – particularly urban voices from the Global South and youth perspectives – need to be heard.

This funding will support cities in the Global South to deliver local inclusive climate action, build resilience for residents, pilot city-led approaches to loss and damage and build cities’ influence in global policy debates.

We should be proud of the work Scotland does working across the globe at a sub-sovreign state level to tackle climate change. As co-chair of The Under2 Coalition—the largest global network of states, regions, provinces and other subnational governments committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest—Scotland is setting the agenda for a body covering over 270 governments representing 1.75 billion people and 50 per cent of the global economy. It shows the power and commitment of Scotland’s people that we elect governments that prioritise the issue of the age.

There is an abundance of positive but hugely challenging news, which is why we must be vigilant and not let up on demands for governments at home and abroad to take further steps to stop global warming from breaching 1.5 degrees.

Indeed, the reality of COP28 being hosted by one of the largest oil producers in the world reminds us that there is some way to go in phasing out fossil fuels.

Closer to home, we need to be ultra-attentive to reactionary moves in recent times against policies needed to meet our net-zero demands. Rishi Sunak’s attack on ‘low emission zones’ and his approval of hundreds of new oil exploration licenses demonstrate a concerning trajectory for the UK.

Overwhelmingly, voters support net-zero policies. While, of course, they need to be implemented in a just and effective way, parties that do not make concerted efforts to put the climate at the forefront of their manifestos will do so at their peril come the next general election and be judged badly by generations to come.