Keir Starmer attended the conference in Azerbaijan (Image: Getty)
The decision to send 470 UK delegates to the COP29 conference in Azerbaijan is likely to have generated almost 483 tonnes of carbon dioxide, Express.co.uk has calculated.
And Richard Tice, Reform UK’s deputy leader and the MP for Boston and Skegness, has skewered Labour over what he called its “shocking hypocrisy”, claiming: “They’ve gone on a net zero holiday at our expense.”
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The 483 tonnes generated from the trip is equivalent to the emissions from 105 cars in a year and burning 1,123 barrels of oil. It would also take 21,955 trees absorbing CO2 for an entire year to offset the amount.
The size of the delegation has raised eyebrows after it was revealed that the government flew in 354 Government officials and ministers from the UK, including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
The additional 116 people consisted of those travelling from Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, plus business figures, policy experts and journalists.
In order to work out the carbon footprint, Express.co.uk assumed that the 354 UK officials flew from Heathrow to Baku’s Heydar Aliyev Airport via economy-class travel on a standard long-haul aircraft, a round trip of 4971 miles (8,000 kilometres).
READ MORE: Lee Anderson rages at city's 'insult' of giving asylum seekers free bus passes
Sir Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrive in Baku (Image: Getty)
The UK Government's Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) provides emission factors for aviation. For long-haul economy flights, it is around 0.15 kg CO？ per passenger per kilometre.
The result would be an estimated 482,679 kilograms (482.7 metric tonnes) of CO？.
If the remaining 116 people had likewise flown from Heathrow, this would result in an additional 158,166 kilograms (158.2 metric tonnes) of CO？ - but given they were travelling from various parts of the world, it’s possibly this figure might actually be somewhat higher.
Mr Tice, who is also the MP for Boston and Skegness, told Express.co.uk: “Labour’s hypocrisy is shocking. They have gone on a net zero holiday at our expense.
This COP, the UK has sent a clear message:
We are prioritising better jobs, cheaper bills, and higher growth.
We will lead the way in the industries and technologies of the future to ensure prosperity and security for generations to come. pic.twitter.com/YDnn03jJDu
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) November 12, 2024
"We had a budget that made flying more expensive for regular people to go on holiday yet they can take 470 people to talk hot air about the climate.”
A Government spokesperson said: “Through our mission to become a clean energy superpower, with secure, homegrown energy, we will protect billpayers and boost the UK’s energy independence.
“It is in Britain’s national self-interest to attend these summits.
"Any carbon footprint is dwarfed by the carbon prize of delivering our agenda.”
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Richard Tice accused Labour of 'shocking hypocrisy' (Image: Getty)
Azerbaijan's hosting of COP29 has prompted controversy for other reasons, including its promotion of fossil fuels.
President Ilham Aliyev described oil and gas as a "gift of God" and defended their continued production, which clashed with the global climate agenda of reducing dependency on fossil fuels.
Greta Thunberg and other climate activists have been vocal about COP29’s risks of "greenwashing," criticising the decision to hold such a vital climate conference in a country heavily reliant on oil and gas exports.
Addressing the conference last Wednesday (November 13), Sir Keir said: “The race is on for the clean energy jobs of the future, the economy of tomorrow, and I don’t want to be in the middle of the pack. I want to get ahead of the game.
Greta Thunberg has claimed COP29 is an example of 'greenwashing' (Image: Getty)
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"This is a huge opportunity for investment for UK businesses, for British workers, if we act now to lead the world in the economy of tomorrow.”
“This is how we move towards better jobs, cheaper bills, higher growth, the industries and net technologies of the future and ensure the prosperity and security of our nation for decades to come.”
He also reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to the 1.5°C global temperature goal, adding: “A global problem also requires global partnership, responsible international cooperation, which is where we took the opportunity at this Cop to again urge all parties to come forward with ambitious targets of their own."