Letter to the Chairman of the Committee
from Victoria Bowman, Global Economic Issues Director, Foreign
and Commonwealth Office, and Rear Admiral Alan Richard, ACDS Strategy
and Plans, Ministry of Defence
As part of the Government's efforts to tackle
climate change, the FCO and MOD have been working closely together
on the security implications of climate change and are seeking
to promote an understanding of the climate security debate amongst
the international defence and security community.
The Government position on this issue was summarised
in the second version of the National Security Strategy that stated,
"Globally, climate change will increasingly be a wide-ranging
driver of insecurity because it acts as a `threat multiplier',
exacerbating existing weaknesses and tensions around the world.
It presents a challenge that goes far beyond the physical disruption
to the environment."
The FCO and MOD have appointed, on a trial basis,
Rear Admiral Neil Morisetti as their Climate and Energy Security
Envoy. We would like to offer to your Members a briefing by RAdm
Morisetti on the security implications of climate change and consequences
for the international defence and security policy.
RAdm Morisetti's role is threefold; firstly
to be the UK voice globally on climate security to broaden and
deepen the debate on these issues, secondly to integrate the policy
implications stemming from climate security across Whitehall and,
thirdly to help embed the MOD's climate strategy across the organisation.
The international community will come together
in Copenhagen in December to negotiate what the UK Government
is strongly advocating will be an ambitious deal to limit the
dangerous consequences of climate change and set us on the path
to a low carbon future. The focus of our work this autumn is trying
to create the right political conditions for an international
deal in Copenhagen and RAdm Morisetti's role is key to achieving
this.
5 November 2009
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