Prime Minister David Cameron is not yet committed to attend Rio+20.
Does your country have a Rio+20 preparatory committee?
The United Kingdom's preparations for Rio are led by Caroline Spelman, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). She has been working closely with Ministers across Whitehall in developing the UK position, and regularly meets with business and civil society partners to share views.
Has your country completed a sustainable development review?
The United Kingdom has followed up its national Sustainable Development Strategy by publishing several documents that take us towards the outcomes we want in Rio: ‘The Natural Environment White Paper’ which sets out UK Government’s broad international aims, and ‘Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy: Government and business working together’ which sets out UK governments approach to the green economy.
Is your country planning on announcing new initiatives at Rio?
The United Kingdom announced the establishment of up to £60 million in new funding to support the demonstration of carbon capture and storage technologies in developing countries.
The United Kingdom is a global leader in embedding natural capital in the national accounts. We want to take that work to Rio and showcase it as an area in which we are taking the lead. The UK has committed to include natural capital within our own national accounts by 2020 – we are calling on others to set themselves the same timeline.
The United Kingdom will introduce mandatory carbon reporting rules requiring around 1,800 of the UK's largest listed companies to report annual on their greenhouse gas emissions. The emission reporting rules will come into effect next April.
What is your vision for success at Rio+20?
UK sees agreement to launch SDGs as a key outcome for Rio, especially in the areas of food, energy and water security.
