Alok Sharma under fire over climate change visit to China
has risked accusations of pandering to Beijing after Chinese state media claimed he 'hailed' the country's efforts to tackle during an official trip. Mr Sharma visited the country this month in his role as President of the Cop26 climate change summit which is due to take place in in November. is the world's biggest emitter of climate-warming greenhouse gases and is under pressure to announce more ambitious measures to crackdown on coal production and consumption. Chinese state media characterised Mr Sharma's comments during the visit as 'hailing China's efforts in tackling climate change'. The UK Government said Mr Sharma had held 'constructive talks' and insisted he had 'stressed the need for China and all countries to take urgent action over the next decade'. Mr Sharma has also been accused of dodging an interview with the BBC while he was in the country. A report published in May this year found China released a greater volume of greenhouse gases in 2019 than all of the world's developed nations combined. Experts from research firm Rhodium Group in tandem with Breakthrough Energy said global emissions had risen 11.4 per cent over the last decade, reaching 52 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2019, with China responsible for 27 per cent of this. The second-worst emitter was the US accounting for 11 per cent of the total with India edging out the EU for the first time to come in third at 6.6 per cent. Mr Sharma tweeted yesterday that he had held a 'constructive discussion' with Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng. He said: 'We spoke about the importance of climate action, our goals for #COP26 and #COP15, and opportunities for enhanced cooperation on clean energy, low carbon trade and investment and green finance.' Mr Sharma's visit to China has not received the same level of fanfare as some of his other trips as the UK tries not to alienate the country's leadership as it seeks to persuade Beijing to do more to tackle climate change. Critics want ministers to take a much tougher approach and to demand Beijing take greater action to reduce emissions. Mr Sharma held a series of meetings with Xie Zhenhua, Special Representative for Climate Change Affairs of China, during his two day visit to Tianjin. Mr Sharma said in a statement issued by the Cabinet Office at the end of his visit: 'I have had constructive discussions on my first visit to China in the COP26 role, but time is running out to prevent a climate catastrophe, and so the discussions I have had here are nothing short of crucial. 'The commitments President Xi has made over the last year are welcome and China's pledge to tackle climate change as a shared mission for humanity is encouraging. The choices that China makes, on their energy mix, and on coal specifically, will shape our shared future. 'The question that remains is how fast they put these into action, along with other major emitters. I look forward to more detailed plans being published setting out how China's targets will be met. 'The clock is running down fast and the next decade will be decisive. All countries need to pick up the pace on driving down emissions and safeguarding people and nature from the worst effects of climate change.' Mr Sharma has faced accusations of dodging an interview with the BBC during his trip. The broadcaster's China Correspondent, Robin Brant, said he had been 'left with nothing' despite attempts to secure an interview. Mr Brant said the failure to secure an interview had been blamed on 'last minute diary constraints' as he pointed out 'the only reporting' on the visit had come from Chinese state media.