Former Governor of Bank of England says Pope is “absolutely right” on climate crisis warning

The former Governor of the Bank of England has spoken out in support of Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation, Laudate Deum.

UN special envoy on climate action and finance Mark Carney said businesses must urgently step up the fight against climate change, but can use the lessons of the financial crisis to guide them.

Speaking at a webinar held by the Policy Institute at King’s College London, Mr Carney  – who is a Catholic – said the speed at which the global community is transitioning to a clean energy future has “gone up exponentially”.

“It really has moved particularly since the Glasgow Cop26,” he said.

“That is true [but] it is also true that we’re running out of time and the consequences of running out of time appear worse.”

He said Pope Francis is “absolutely” right to raise the alarm on global warming eight years after he issued a similar plea.

The Vatican this week published a new apostolic exhortation titled Laudate Deum, which means “Praise God” in Latin. In it, the pontiff called on world leaders to step up in the fight against climate change.

The Pope said the planet is moving towards a “point of no return” as global warming approaches the maximum recommended limit of 1.5C higher than the pre-industrial average.

“The anchor in terms of being at a climatic tipping point is absolutely right,” Mr Carney said.

The Canadian economist, who governed the BoE from 2013 to 2020, cited Johan Rockstrom, director of Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, to back up his point.

The Swedish scientist has been internationally recognised for his work on global sustainability issues.

“One of the things [Rockstrom] has taught me is as we’ve exhausted the carbon budget for 1.5C, almost exhausted it, we’ve also learned that the mapping of degree rises to extreme weather events has been worse than expected,” Mr Carney said.