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US and rest of world must follow China’s lead on green energy, says John Kerry

Former US secretary of state says most nations are ‘stumbling along’ while Beijing has ‘hugely accelerated’ Cop31 live – latest updates China is leading the world in moving away from fossil fuels , and the rest of the globe – including the US – must now follow, the former US secretary of state John Kerry has told the Guardian, as Cop watchers wonder exactly how China is going to approach this year’s climate summit. As Cop31 opens – this year the climate conference is in Turkey – there is plenty of speculation about whether China will finally step into the leadership role that it has long avoided. In its latest “five-year plan” adopted in March 2026, China for the first time pledged to “actively participate in and lead global climate governance”. Cop31 could provide the first indications Beijing is ready to put that rhetoric into action, something it has historically been reluctant to do. Continue reading...

Polanski says Labour has ‘shocking record’ on climate issues as ministers expected to cut EV targets for car industry – UK politics live

Louise Haigh is expected to agree to cut a target for EV sales by about a quarter Good morning. Monday is often the busiest day of the week at Westminster but, with the Commons still enjoying a mini November recess, today is looking a bit quiet. Andy Burnham is on a visit to a hospital this morning and he wants to talk about a £40m programme in England to try to keep vulnerable patients out of hospital. The Department of Health and Social Care has the details here , and Andrew Gregory explains it all here. But Burnham may find he ends up taking more questions from the media on another Guardian story, Kiran Stacey ’s scoop about the government being on course to water down electric vehicle (EV) targets. Continue reading...

Climate always comes second: are green issues slipping down Burnham’s agenda?

Prime minister says he’s committed to meeting climate targets, but some believe his actions suggest otherwise Labour expected to cut EV targets for car industry despite MPs’ climate concerns Andy Burnham insists he is committed to the green transition, but his MPs worry that in decision after decision, he is showing that other priorities come first. “Our changing climate is a major concern for many Britons, not least because we have just emerged from our hottest summer on record ,” the prime minister wrote in the Guardian in September. Continue reading...

Labour expected to cut EV targets for UK’s car industry despite MPs’ protests

Exclusive: Louise Haigh likely to weaken mandate for sales that forms key part of emission reduction plan Ministers are expected to make steep cuts to the government’s electric vehicle (EV) targets this week, in a move that will relieve carmakers but alarm many Labour MPs who are worried about the government’s commitment to the green agenda. Louise Haigh, the de facto deputy prime minister, will finalise the plan after a crunch meeting in Downing Street on Wednesday to settle a long-running dispute between the transport, energy and business departments. Continue reading...

Tesla to wind down Cybertruck production as Elon Musk focuses on robotics and AI

Decision made in order for factory in Texas to be used for Cybercab, the carmaker’s self-driving taxi Elon Musk has announced that Tesla will wind down production of its Cybertruck, marking the end of a failed effort to take a chunk of the lucrative market for pickups in the US. The billionaire chief executive said production of the car will stop in about the middle of next year at the company’s factory in Texas in order to use the plant for the Cybercab, its self-driving taxi. Continue reading...

The worst two words in the dead of night? ‘Motorway closed’ | Adrian Chiles

You are shunted into side streets, crawling along, united with your fellow drivers in wordless despair. Last week, at 2am, my spirit broke The worst three words in the transport lexicon are often said to be “rail”, “replacement” and “bus”, in that order. But there’s worse. “Motorway closed” is worse. At least with rail replacement buses you get fair warning, on booking apps and whatnot. You can resolve to embrace the pain or, more likely, abandon the journey. Motorway closures, in the dead of night, invariably come as a nasty surprise. Waze, Google Maps, Apple Maps, etc can reliably get you from a car park in Penzance to a cul-de-sac in East Kilbride, but often can’t tell the difference between an open motorway and a shut motorway in the middle of the night. Football fans know all about this. You travel across the country for an evening match, and you lose. The prospect of a long drive home blackens your mood further, but as you slope away from the ground you cling to one consoling tho...