Greta Thunberg calls out Jacinda Ardern over emissions
Climate activist Greta Thunberg has called out world leaders, including New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, for not doing enough to combat climate change.
During an interview with The Guardian, Ms Thunberg said she couldn’t think of any politician who has impressed her.
When asked about Ms Ardern specifically, Ms Thunberg noted that New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions haven’t decreased.
“It’s funny that people believe Jacinda Ardern and people like that are climate leaders. That just tells you how little people know about the climate crisis,” she said.
“Obviously the emissions haven’t fallen. It goes without saying that these people are not doing anything.”
In December, Thunberg described New Zealand’s commitment to reducing 1 percent of emissions by 2025 as “nothing unique to any nation”.
In April, it was revealed that New Zealand’s emissions increased by 2 percent in 2019.
Though emissions fell by 4.5 percent in the year ending in March 2020 due to the pandemic, levels began to increase towards the end of the recorded year.
Climate Change Minister James Shaw said Ms Thunberg was correct to say New Zealand’s emissions hadn’t increased.
“That is why the work our Government is doing is so important - and clearly we have a lot of work to do,” he told Stuff on Sunday.
“This is a marathon event involving every minister and every part of Government.”
From 2022, the Climate Commission wants New Zealand to meet a decreasing “carbon budget”, which details the amount of greenhouse gas the country can “spend” each year.
In December, Ms Ardern responded to Ms Thunberg’s initial comments by clarifying that New Zealand had bigger goals than one emissions target.
“If that was the sum ambition of any government, then that would be worthy of criticism; it is not our sum ambition and it is not the totality of our plans on climate change,” the Prime Minister said.
“But again, I think that it is actually for us just to get on with the business of fulfilling our obligations and expectations.”
Image: Getty Images