G8 disappointment on climate

As world leaders begin their first day of talks at the G8 summit in Heiligendamm in Germany, Karina Litvack, Head of F&C’s Governance & Sustainable Investment team, said the group’s inability to agree on CO2 emissions targets was a blow to tackling climate change. Litvack said: “The G8's failure to reach a clear consensus on CO2 targets is a real setback. Business needs to get a clear message from government that carbon prices are headed upwards in order to start investing in climate-friendly technologies on any serious scale. By stalling on establishing a comprehensive target-setting regime, the G8 have put the brakes on at a time when we need to step on it.”

“Don't expect companies or their investors to fund projects that don't add up financially. We are at an impasse and governments needs to break it. Until that happens, the volume will remain far more modest than it needs to be,” she added.