World Bank president David Malpas told the Guardian he does not deny climate change. “You know I’m not [a climate denier]. So don’t misquote it,” he said when asked after a Cop27 event. Malpas, a Donald Trump appointee, has previously said he knew “even knew” whether to accept climate science. Joe Biden’s White House condemned his comments. The World Bank has repeatedly failed to adopt a strong action plan on the climate crisis and is under increasing pressure for reforms to help finance the climate transition in developing countries. The Bank president had declined interview requests at Cop27 after he was delayed in pre-climate South Africa when his plane was struck by lightning. When approached Wednesday, Malpas declined to answer questions about the need to reform the World Bank before walking backstage. Updated at 09:43 GMT Important events Show only key events Please enable JavaScript to use this feature Cop27 delegates are hungry and grumpy this year. More from my colleague Patrick Greenfield: A year ago, Irn-Bru proved a smash hit at Cop26 as delegates from around the world tasted the Scottish delicacy for the first time. But in Egypt, the struggle to find food and water was a key part of the culinary experience at the climate summit. In the early days of Cop27, taps and coolers bearing the logo of sponsor Coca-Cola stood empty in the African sun as thirsty delegates looked on. Counter workers bickered with each other as the last sandwiches, quiche slices and croissants left. The ice cream stands were the only places not affected by the shortages. A spokesman said they had resorted to eating three ice creams in one day. Photos from the first two days at Cop27. US President’s Special Climate Envoy John Kerry, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz meet in sidelines of the COP27 climate summit in Egypt’s Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on November 7, 2022. Photo: Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images Climate activist Vanessa Nakate, from Uganda, is accompanied by others of Fridays for Future to protest Germany’s climate policy Olaf Scholz at the COP27 UN Climate Summit, Tuesday, November 8, 2022, in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. Photo: Nariman El-Mofty/AP Updated at 09:53 GMT
World Bank president David Malpas says he’s not a ‘climate denier’
Patrick Greenfield World Bank president David Malpas told the Guardian he does not deny climate change. “You know I’m not [a climate denier]. So don’t misquote it,” he said when asked after a Cop27 event. Malpas, a Donald Trump appointee, has previously said he knew “even knew” whether to accept climate science. Joe Biden’s White House condemned his comments. The World Bank has repeatedly failed to adopt a strong action plan on the climate crisis and is under increasing pressure for reforms to help finance the climate transition in developing countries. The Bank president had declined interview requests at Cop27 after he was delayed in pre-climate South Africa when his plane was struck by lightning. When approached Wednesday, Malpas declined to answer questions about the need to reform the World Bank before walking backstage. Updated at 09:43 GMT Our environment correspondent, Fiona Harvey, has put together a handy list of how likely progress is at Cop27. It’s terrible news for those still clinging to 1.5C, but some amazing achievements could be seen at the summit. Updated at 09:27 GMT Nina Lachani Finally, the first good protest at Cop27 in the central Blue Zone of the conference, and of course it includes a Tyrannosaurus rex and Pikachu joining around 50 activists from Asia, Africa and the Americas who are calling for an end to fossil fuel funding and a change investment in community renewable energy projects. Dipti Bhatnagar from Friends of the Earth International in Mozambique cited the gas deal between Total and the government, which sparked an internal conflict and led to a million refugees. My country is not responsible for the climate crisis, but we are suffering the effects. Now, the rich countries are going to grab the huge natural gas reserves and the people are being deprived of their land. One million people out of a population of 23 million live in refugee camps due to gas. We say no to more gas funding. We will not let Africa burn. Protesters at Cop27. Photo: Nina Lakhani Egyptian authorities banned protests at the main conference center where the climate talks are being held, just as they are banned across the country, but surprisingly there was no sign that security was immediately closed. Delegates stopped to take pictures as they streamed past on their way to the first events of the day. Despite the ban, we will likely see more protests in the blue zone in the coming days, as many activists have said they will not use the official designated protest area out in the desert, nor will they go to the green zone, the official activist area that is the half theme park, half corporate exhibition space and a 25 minute walk from the negotiations. Updated at 09:28 GMT Oliver Holmes Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s live blog of day three of Cop27, the United Nations climate conference in Egypt. The opening two days – in which leaders give speeches about their frustrations and aspirations – are over. Now is the time for the hard work: the negotiations. We will also expect protests. Our team is in Egypt at the conference and will send reports. My name is Oliver Holmes and I will be with you over the next few hours. You can send me questions, interesting things you’ve seen and even rants to [email protected]n.com or on Twitter @olireports.
