Business leaders call for sustainable finance to adapt to climate change

UK business leaders have highlighted the need for finance that will enable businesses to adapt their operations to climate change while preserving their competitiveness in the UK.

The call came from the Confederation of British Industries (CBI) following a round table it hosted with the International Chamber of Commerce to discuss the UK’s delivery of the United Nation’s (UN's) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In a statement the CBI said: “For businesses, the starting point to adapting to climate change and delivering on UK commitments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals has to be ensuring their on-going competitiveness within the UK. We need to support industry to decarbonise here in the UK, rather than move abroad, which requires smart policies that avoid cumulative cost burdens.

It said sustainable finance was a “key enabler” to these ambitions adding: “The Government must find innovative solutions to allow firms across all sectors of the economy to transition to sustainable business models.” It said it was “vital that the government and business act now to capitalise on the golden opportunities sustainable finance could bring.”

The CBI looked to the UN High Level Political Forum in September, where the UK’s delivery of the SDGs will commander review and urged “business, government and civil society” to work together in providing “ “A clear joined-up strategy across government that includes the departments for development, trade, business and environment,” along with “a clear definition of the sustainable development goals and a clear plan for how the UK can deliver these successfully.”