Скачать или смотреть Fossil of the Day Award Ceremony in full: UK, November 12 2025

During Tuesday’s Just Transition Work Programme (JTWP) discussions, most countries offered constructive proposals – including the G77+China, which called for a Global Just Transition Mechanism and was recognised with the Ray of the Day.

Against this backdrop of leadership and clarity, one country stood out for blocking progress: the United Kingdom:

1. Refusing to recognise the need for a global mechanism, the UK claimed existing UNFCCC structures were “sufficient,” ignoring clear calls from developing countries for coordinated international support. In doing so, it replicated a familiar pattern – dismissing the lived realities and expertise of the Global South. It takes a special kind of irony to tell developing countries they don’t “need” support – in a COP session about fairness and cooperation.

2. The UK further sought to shrink the scope of Just Transition, insisting it should remain a domestic issue – undermining the spirit of solidarity and shared learning. A truly Just Transition cannot stop at national borders. While the UK has made some strides at home, nations gain strength by learning from one another and working together.

3. And behind language about “ambitious outcomes” and “accelerated action” lay no substance or support.

This feels like a serious misstep from a country that could have been a Just Transition champion – with promising domestic examples such as its new green jobs initiative. There is still time at COP30 for the UK to show leadership and support a global mechanism that delivers better lives for everyone and that leaves no-one behind.

For now, for standing in the way of progress and mistaking “management” for justice, the United Kingdom earns today’s Fossil of the Day.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

The Fossil of the Day award has been presented by Climate Action Network (CAN) at COP for 16 years now. The award is presented daily at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, spotlighting those doing the most to block progress in climate negotiations.
Award location: Blue Zone, Zone D, Action Area 1 – 18:00 BRT daily.

Media contact: Attila Kulcsár – Climate Action Network International [email protected] | +44 7472 124872 (WhatsApp)