Swiss firms narrowly avoid ‘Responsible Business’ liability as vote divides nation November 29, 2020 By Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss firms narrowly avoided facing greater liability for human rights and environmental abuses on Sunday after a national vote rejected the proposal due to regional differences despite it winning majority popular support. In a divisive referendum, 50.7% of Swiss voters supported proposals by the Responsible Business Initiative (RBI) [...]
Can the government hit the targets in its 10 point climate plan? November 18, 2020 Last night Boris Johnson unveiled his much-touted 10 point plan to drive a “green industrial revolution” in the UK, creating 250,000 jobs in the process. Featuring commitments in sectors such as heating, wind power, nuclear energy, hydrogen and electric vehicles, it has been largely positively received by industry. However, some are concerned that some areas [...]
Boris Johnson to pump billions into climate change plan and confirms diesel vehicle ban from 2030 November 17, 2020 Boris Johnson has tonight unveiled his 10 point plan for the UK's "green industrial revolution", which he said would create 250,000 new jobs.
FRC: Auditors must challenge management view of firm implications of climate change November 10, 2020 Audit watchdog the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has said auditors should test and challenge board and management’s assessment of the implications of climate change outlined in financial statements. Following a major review of how companies and auditors report on the impact of climate change, the FRC determined that boards and companies, auditors, professional associations, regulators [...]
Ineos launches clean hydrogen business in green drive November 9, 2020 Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s firm Ineos has joined the long list of corporates piling into green energy with the launch of a new UK business to cut carbon emissions. The chemicals company has today launched a new clean hydrogen business, headquartered in the UK, in its drive to net-zero carbon emissions. Through its subsidiary Inovyn, Ineos [...]
EU tells banks to comply with sustainability disclosures despite lack of guidance October 30, 2020 The EU has told banks and insurers they must comply with the bloc’s new laws on sustainability-related disclosures from March, even though detailed guidance on how the rules work in practice will not be ready in time. Last year the bloc approved a law designed to increase transparency on how financial institutions consider sustainability risks [...]
Investment into UK ‘tech for good’ surges amid climate crisis October 27, 2020 UK impact tech firms have received nearly ten times more investment in the past five years as European investors turned their attention to issues such as climate change. Investment into these ‘tech for good’ startups has increased 9.5 times between 2014 and 2019, according to the latest research by Tech Nation and Dealroom. An impact [...]
We do not need to compromise the economy to fix the environment October 12, 2020 Overwhelming scientific evidence tells us that the climate is already changing. If we are to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees and avoid the more extreme effects on our environment, averting potentially devastating consequences, we need to act now. And that is what the City of London Corporation is doing. Last week, it launched its [...]
HSBC to set aside $1 trillion in green financing, targets net zero emissions by 2050 October 9, 2020 HSBC will target net zero carbon emissions across its entire customer base by 2050 at the latest, and provide between $750 billion and $1 trillion in financing to help clients make the transition, its Chief Executive Noel Quinn has said. In the strongest statement by Europe’s biggest bank on climate change to date, its CEO [...]
Climate-related risk becomes leading concern for business leaders October 8, 2020 Global business leaders are becoming increasingly concerned about the risk climate change poses to business. The World Economic Forum’s risk report shows that the top risks remain related to economics, with unemployment the main concern for business executives. Previously the risk of infectious diseases had been underestimated but have inevitably jumped 28 spots and it [...]