Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen will lead the COP negotiations. Photo: Chris Bowen Facebook.
The Federal Government is putting on a brave face today after conceding Australia won’t be hosting the COP31 United Nations climate change meeting next year.
Anthony Albanese had been pushing hard for Adelaide to be the 2026 host city for the Conference of the Parties annual gathering, but found intense competition from Türkiye, which also wanted to host the meeting.
The Prime Minister wanted next year’s COP to have a strong focus on the impacts of climate change on Pacific islands, and believed Australia was best placed to lead that discussion.
He caved in on Thursday, saying Türkiye would now lead COP31 but Australia would maintain a high role in the gathering and had secured strong concessions for the Pacific.
Under the COP rules, if an agreement had not been reached between Australia and Türkiye, next year’s meeting would have been held in Bonn, Germany, by default.
“We’re in a situation where it would not have advantaged multilateral action on climate change if we couldn’t even agree on where a conference was,” Mr Albanese said.
“It would have been a real setback. So what we’ve come up with is a big win for both Australia and Türkiye.
“We needed to work it through with our Pacific partners, and it was either Bonn or Türkiye.
“That is the situation that we were facing, and it’s really important when you have a two-horse race where if there’s not an agreement, it would have gone to Bonn, and that would not have been a good outcome.”
While Türkiye will take on the presidency of COP31, Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen, who has been representing Australia at the current COP in Brazil this week, will become the COP president of negotiations.
Mr Bowen will drive Australia’s key role in the lead-up to the conference and also help the Pacific host a leaders’ meeting on climate change before the main COP summit next year.
“Obviously, it would be great if Australia could have it all, but we can’t have it,” he said.
“This process works on consensus, and consensus means if someone objected to a bid, it would go to Bonn.
“No COP president implies no plan. That would be irresponsible for multilateralism and we didn’t want that to happen.
“Hence, it was important to strike an agreement with Türkiye.”
The PM has already spoken with a number of his Pacific island counterparts, describing the outcome as an “outstanding result” that will allow Pacific issues to be “front and centre” of the COP.
Australia had strong support throughout the Pacific for its bid to host COP31.
Greens leader Larissa Waters said the outcome was embarrassing for Australia and that the PM didn’t really want to host next year’s summit anyway.
She described Australia’s motive as a “half-hearted greenwashing effort” that was never going to succeed.
“This is an embarrassing outcome, but it was clear from the start that the government didn’t really want to host a climate summit,” Senator Waters said.
“The Prime Minister never really wanted to host a climate conference if it meant being honest about the future of coal and gas while his mining corporation mates are watching.”
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said it was outrageous that Labor had spent so much money on the bid and was prepared to commit far more to host the event.
“The fact that this government even considered spending $2 billion of taxpayers’ money on this exercise just goes to show how their priorities are all wrong,” Ms Ley said.
“I think Türkiye is doing the Australian Government a big favour because we had a $12 billion deficit last year.
“This Prime Minister wants to spend $2 billion on hosting a talkfest here in this country and at the same time can’t look Australians in the eye and answer a simple question — which is when will energy prices come down?”
Ms Ley added during a media appearance Friday morning that Australians don’t need a globetrotting part-time Energy Minister in Mr Bowen with his appointment as COP negotiations president.
“His real job is here at home, focusing on the one thing that we are focused on, and that is how you bring electricity prices down,” she said.
“Australians do deserve better and I’m not sure where the Prime Minister is coming from when he backs in this appointment.”
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said he was disappointed Adelaide won’t be hosting COP31, but recognises the Federal Government was in a difficult position.
“I understand the position the Prime Minister has taken, “ he said.
“He has taken a position to try and navigate the frankly obscene process that exists internationally.”
