British Gov’t Criticized for Fossil Fuel Spending

The British government has been accused of undermining its own efforts to tackle climate change after new research revealed it is investing twice as much in fossil fuel projects overseas as it is in renewables.

Almost half (46%) of the money the UK spent on energy overseas went on fossil fuels while barely more than a fifth (22%) was spent on renewable energy sources.

The research, commissioned by Catholic charity CAFOD and carried out by the Overseas Development Institute, analyzed spending between 2010 and 2014–the last period for which data are available, The Independent reported.

It shows that of the £7.5 billion ($9.7 billion) the UK spent on energy abroad, £1.3 billion were spent on renewables and £2.9 billion on fossil fuels–appearing to contradict both government ministers’ promises on climate change and the UK’s international commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement.

The treaty, signed in 2015, says countries must work toward “making finance flows consistent with a pathway toward low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development”.

However, UK spending on fossil fuels overseas increased by more than half a billion pounds in the five-year period up to 2014–up from £2.2 billion in 2009-13.