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Whether or not Rishi Sunak will attend COP27 is “under review”, Downing Street has confirmed – as the PM faces mounting calls to attend the climate conference in Egypt.

Asked if the prime minister will be attending the summit, a Number 10 spokesperson said that “any attendance at COP would depend on progress on preparation for that fiscal event – and that work is ongoing”.

Last week, Downing Street said the PM would not be attending the conference in Sharm el Sheikh next month as he would be preoccupied with “other pressing domestic commitments, including preparations for the autumn budget”.

The spokesperson added: “The prime minister fully recognises the importance of the COP summit and is fully committed to addressing climate change.”

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Probed on whether this decision could change, the spokesperson continued: “I think that the prime minister set out that the public would rightly want him to focus on the domestic issues, particularly on restoring fiscal credibility and delivering on a budget that works for the British people.

“There is substantial progress being made on that and so we are keeping the position on COP under review.”

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Speaking to broadcasters on a visit to Croydon University Hospital on Friday, Mr Sunak reiterated this, insisting that he must focus on the “depressing domestic challenges” rather than head to the climate conference in Egypt.

But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused Mr Sunak of displaying a “failure of leadership”.

“Britain showing up to work with world leaders is an opportunity to grasp. Not an event to shun,” he posted on social media.

Rebecca Newsom, head of politics at Greenpeace UK, accused Mr Sunak of not taking climate change “seriously enough”.

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PM defends decision not to attend COP27

While, over the weekend, the president of last year’s summit Alok Sharma suggested the PM risks undermining Britain’s position as a world leader on green issues if he shuns the conference.

“I’m pretty disappointed that the prime minister is not going. I understand that he’s got a huge in-tray of domestic issues that he has to deal with,” the government’s climate tsar told The Sunday Times.

“But I would say that going to COP27 would allow for engagement with other world leaders. And I think it does send a signal – if the prime minister was to go – about our renewed commitment on this issue.”

Mr Sharma, who lost his cabinet seat in the latest reshuffle, will also be there, along with US president Joe Biden and America’s special envoy on climate change, John Kerry.

Read More:
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King Charles will not attend COP27 in Egypt, Buckingham Palace says

A spokesperson for the Scottish government last week confirmed First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is planning to attend COP27.

“Given the vital importance of governments working together to tackle climate change, it is the first minister’s intention to attend COP27,” the spokesperson said on Friday.

“Details of the ministerial programme are currently being finalised.”

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Prime Minister should be at COP

Mr Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss had been due to attend the summit which is due to take place from 6 to 18 November.

New Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s autumn budget – in which he will set out his government’s tax and spending plans – will be delivered on 17 November.

It has been reported that former PM Boris Johnson is planning to attend the summit to show his support for international efforts to tackle climate change.

Last week, Environment Secretary Therese Coffey defended Mr Sunak’s decision not to go to COP27, insisting that protecting the planet was “absolutely a priority for the government”.

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Environment secretary defends Sunak’s COP snub

While former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg said the PM was right not to go to the summit, saying: “The cost of living won’t be solved in Sharm el Sheikh where each hotel room for the conference is £2,000 a night.”

But signalling a potential U-turn earlier on Monday, environment minister Mark Spencer told Sky News that Mr Sunak would go to COP27 “if he’s got time”, adding that the prime minister has “an inbox which is full to the brim”.

Meanwhile, on Sunday it was announced that King Charles will host a reception for key COP27 figures at Buckingham Palace on Friday, despite not attending the conference himself.

Read more:
King faces tough test if he wants to keep his personal climate fight alive

The King, who has been a passionate campaigner on environmental issues, will host the event which will bring together over 200 international business leaders, decision makers and NGOs (non-governmental organisations) to mark the end of the United Kingdom’s presidency of COP26 and look ahead to the COP27 summit in Egypt.

The King has attended the UN climate conference for a number of years and delivered one of the keynote speeches at the opening ceremony for COP26 in Glasgow – but will not be going to Sharm el Sheikh.

Guests at the King’s Buckingham Palace reception will include Mr Sunak, who is expected to speak briefly at the event.

Watch the Daily Climate Show at 3.30pm Monday to Friday, and The Climate Show with Tom Heap on Saturday and Sunday at 3.30pm and 7.30pm.

All on Sky News, on the Sky News website and app, on YouTube and Twitter.

The show investigates how global warming is changing our landscape and highlights solutions to the crisis.

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Prince Harry denies having ‘physical fight’ with Prince Andrew

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Prince Harry denies having 'physical fight' with Prince Andrew

Prince Harry has denied having a fight with Prince Andrew after it was claimed “punches were thrown” between the pair in 2013.

The allegations appeared in excerpts from a new book on the Duke of York being serialised in the Daily Mail.

It claims a row started after Prince Andrew said something behind Harry’s back, with Andrew “left with a bloody nose” and the pair needing to be broken up.

It also claimed the Duke of York once warned his nephew about marrying Meghan and suggested it wouldn’t last long.

However, a spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex strongly denied the claims.

“I can confirm Prince Harry and Prince Andrew have never had a physical fight, nor did Prince Andrew ever make the comments he is alleged to have made about the Duchess of Sussex to Prince Harry,” a statement said.

They said a legal letter had been sent to the Daily Mail due to “gross inaccuracies, damaging and defamatory remarks” in its reporting.

The book – Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York – is billed as the first joint biography of Prince Andrew and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson.

It’s said to be based on interviews with “over a hundred people who have never spoken before”.

Prince Harry – in his own 2023 book Spare – made his own claims of an altercation with Prince William.

He said his brother once knocked him to the floor amid a confrontation over Meghan’s “rude” and “abrasive” behaviour.

“It all happened so fast. So very fast,” Harry wrote in the book.

“He grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and he knocked me to the floor. I landed on the dog’s bowl, which cracked under my back, the pieces cutting into me.”

“I lay there for a moment, dazed, then got to my feet and told him to get out,” the prince added.

Harry claimed his brother wanted him to hit him back “but I chose not to”, and that William later returned and apologised.

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The Duke Of Sussex has described his relationship with his family as extremely strained after he quit as a working royal and took legal action against the media, and over the removal of his UK police protection.

He claimed earlier this year the King wouldn’t speak to him and there had “been so many disagreements between myself and some of my family”.

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Search for British woman who disappeared from Greek beach

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Search for British woman who disappeared from Greek beach

A search is under way for a British woman who went missing from a beach in Kavala, northern Greece.

The Hellenic Coastguard said the port authority received reports that Michele Ann Joy Bourda, 59, was missing on the evening of 1 August.

The woman went missing from the Ofrynio beach area.

The coastguard is investigating reports that her belongings were left on the beach.

On Sunday, three recreational craft, five fishing boats and two patrol boats were involved in the search.

According to local media, she lived with her husband, who is reportedly of Greek origin, in the Macedonian city of Serres.

She had gone to the beach with him and reportedly vanished while he was sleeping on a sunbed.

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The charity LifeLine Hellas, which put out an appeal to try and find Ms Bourda, said she went missing at noon on 1 August.

She has been described as having straight blonde hair up to her shoulders and being 1.73m tall.

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Martin Lewis reveals who is due for car finance compensation – and how much they’ll get

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Martin Lewis reveals who is due for car finance compensation - and how much they'll get

Martin Lewis says motorists who were mis-sold car finance are likely to receive “hundreds, not thousands of pounds” – with regulators launching a consultation on a new compensation scheme.

The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com believes it is “very likely” that about 40% of Britons who entered personal contact purchase or hire purchase agreements between 2007 and 2021 will be eligible for payouts.

“Discretionary commission arrangements” saw brokers and dealers charge higher levels of interest so they could receive more commission, without telling consumers.

Pics: PA
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Pics: PA

Speaking to Sky News Radio’s Faye Rowlands, Lewis said: “Very rarely will it be thousands of pounds unless you have more than one car finance deal.

“So up to about a maximum of £950 per car finance deal where you are due compensation.”

Lewis explained that consumers who believe they may have been affected should check whether they had a discretionary commission arrangement by writing to their car finance company.

However, the personal finance guru warned against using a claims firm.

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“They’re hardly going to do anything for you and you might get the money paid to you automatically anyway, in which case you’re giving them 30% for nothing,” he added.

Read more: How to tell if you’ve been mis-sold car finance

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Who’s eligible for payout after car finance scandal?

Yesterday, the Financial Conduct Authority said its review of the past use of motor finance “has shown that many firms were not complying with the law or our disclosure rules that were in force when they sold loans to consumers”.

The FCA’s statement added that those affected “should be appropriately compensated in an orderly, consistent and efficient way”.

Lewis told Sky News that the consultation will launch in October – and will take six weeks.

“We expect payouts to come in 2026, assuming this will happen and it’s very likely to happen,” he said.

“As for exactly how will work, it hasn’t decided yet. Firms will have to contact people, although there is an issue about them having destroyed some of the data for older claims.”

He believes claims will either be paid automatically – or affected consumers will need to opt in and apply to get compensation back.

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What motorists should do next

The FCA says you may be affected if you bought a car under a finance scheme, including hire purchase agreements, before 28 January 2021.

Anyone who has already complained does not need to do anything.

The authority added: “Consumers concerned that they were not told about commission, and who think they may have paid too much for the finance, should complain now”.

Its website advises drivers to complain to their finance provider first.

If you’re unhappy with the response, you can then contact the Financial Ombudsman.

Any compensation scheme will be easy to participate in, without drivers needing to use a claims management company or law firm.

The FCA has warned motorists that doing so could end up costing you 30% of any compensation in fees.

The FCA estimates the cost of any scheme – including compensation and administrative costs – to be no lower than £9bn.

But in a video on X, Lewis said that millions of people are likely to be due a share of up to £18bn.

The regulator’s announcement comes after the Supreme Court ruled on a separate, but similar, case on Friday.

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