‘Why COP30 mattered – and why Labour MPs needed to be there’

The scale and urgency of the climate crisis can no longer be ignored.

We have witnessed terrible climate-related natural disasters at home and abroad – from flooding to drought, to wildfires, to the hurricane that hammered Jamaica a couple of weeks ago. The imperative to act is felt by many, but the feeling alone is not enough. To tackle this crisis we need international cooperation.

The UK has the knowledge and expertise to deliver leadership on climate, working with our many partners. This is why the four of us, along with colleagues from other parties, joined a delegation to COP30 in Belém, supporting the Labour government in its role at the heart of these global negotiations. 

READ MORE: ‘As the G20 falters, Britain can lead: Starmer’s global role comes at the right time’

The media sometimes presents COPs as distant diplomatic gatherings, heavy on jargon and light on real-world relevance. But the reality we saw in Belém – and hear every day in our constituencies – is that climate change is already shaping lives and livelihoods.

Here in the UK, families have felt the impact in their pockets through spikes in food prices driven by droughts and failed harvests abroad, and in our bills due to our reliance on volatile oil and gas market prices. Communities have endured record flooding that destroys homes, disrupts transport and leaves local businesses struggling to survive. Summers now regularly bring dangerous heat, putting older people, outdoor workers and those with health conditions at real risk. 

Of course, the story doesn’t end at our borders. Many of the families we represent have loved ones living on the front line of the climate crisis. In West Bromwich, Kettering, Stratford and Bow, and Oxford East, we have spoken to constituents with origins in Asia to the south pacific, who have relatives abroad coping with extreme heat, flooding and crop failure. Other constituents speak of families in Jamaica, India and Bangladesh whose lives are being reshaped by storms and rising sea levels.

During COP30 we met with Bangladeshi organisations working on climate-driven internal and external migration, hearing first-hand how communities are being uprooted as saltwater intrudes into farmland and storms batter low-lying districts. These conversations reaffirmed to us why the UK must play an active role in bringing the Global North and South together, not sit on the sidelines. 

But we in the Labour Party understand that climate action isn’t only about preventing disasters. It is also the single biggest economic opportunity facing the UK. 

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Green industries are growing three times faster than the wider economy. If we get this right, Britain can lead the world in clean energy, green manufacturing and climate innovation, all while reducing energy bills and strengthening national security. We were pleased to see the Prime Minister speak to this when he attended the COP leader’s summit prior to our delegation. 

For constituencies like West Bromwich, with its proud industrial history, the transition offers a chance to secure the next generation of high-quality jobs. In the UK, industrial electricity costs are among the highest in Europe. Decarbonisation is not an optional extra, but essential to keeping British industry competitive. With the right support, businesses in the Black Country and beyond can be part of a revitalised, modern manufacturing base. 

In conversations at home, SMEs have told us that they want stability, leadership and an active state that works with business, not against it. Britain must stay present at COPs if we want to shape the rules, open up markets for UK innovators and show that our country is once again serious about global leadership. 

A striking theme of our meeting with the Centre for American Progress as part of the delegation, was the challenge posed to climate action by a rising far-right movement determined to stall or undo progress. With elections across Europe and the Americas posing real risks to international cooperation, progressive governments must stand together. 

The UK has a responsibility to defend the multilateral system that underpins climate agreements. For all of us, who have constituencies that reflect Britain’s longstanding connections with the Commonwealth, COP30 was a reminder that our commitments to the world are not abstract. They shape how we are seen, how we trade, how we honour our responsibilities to partners and diaspora communities alike. 

Brazil’s leadership under President Lula demonstrated what progressive government can look like on the world stage – ambitious, outward-looking, and rooted in social justice. At a time when global systems are shifting, Britain must not retreat. We must show that we are ready to work bilaterally, multilaterally and across sectors to turn climate ambition into action. 

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COPs matter because they bring together those on the front line, those who finance and regulate the global system, and those who will live with the consequences of today’s decisions. They matter because the climate crisis is already reshaping the lives of our constituents. They matter because the UK cannot afford to sit back while others shape the global energy and industrial future. 

This delegation reinforced one message above all: for the UK, climate leadership is not optional. It is essential for our security, our prosperity, and our place in the world. Labour in government understands this. As MPs, we will do everything we can to keep the UK at the heart of the global effort to build a better future.

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