PM says COP26 is ‘world’s moment of truth’ in fight to tackle climate change
This year’s UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow is “the world’s moment of truth” in the fight to tackle global warming, Boris Johnson has said on the eve of its opening.
Speaking ahead of the COP26 climate summit which begins on Sunday, the prime minister described the event as a moment for “decisive action” from world leaders.
More than 120 will travel to the SEC in Glasgow for a two-day World Leaders Summit on Monday 1 and Tuesday 2 November, with 25,000 delegates, ministers and business leaders from 196 countries and the EU expected to attend the conference over the two weeks in which it takes place.
Boris Johnson has called on world leaders to work together for the good of the planet at the Glasgow summit
COP26 will be one of the biggest global gatherings the UK has ever hosted, and the government says a first busy day of events on Monday at the World Leaders Summit will set the tone of high ambition for the rest of the conference.
“COP26 will be the world’s moment of truth. The question everyone is asking is whether we seize this moment or let it slip away,” the prime minister said ahead of its opening.
“I hope world leaders will hear them and come to Glasgow ready to answer them with decisive action. Together, we can mark the beginning of the end of climate change – and end the uncertainty once and for all.”
This year’s summit is particularly important as it will be the first time the parties will review the most up-to-date plans for how they will limit global warming to 2C but ideally 1.5C, a goal set under the Paris Agreement at COP21.
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‘Time is not on our side’
The UK government has set aims for the COP26 summit including to urge countries to drive forward net zero commitments ahead of 2050, to reduce emissions rapidly over the next decade through commitments on coal, cars and trees and to provide the finance needed by developing nations to deal with climate change.
On Monday, Mr Johnson is set to deliver a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the COP26 World Leaders Summit which will take place at around midday.
The theme of the opening ceremony is “Earth to COP” – a message that represents a direct intervention from the planet and its people for leaders to heed its warnings and advance progress to tackle climate change, the UK government said.
Among those attending and addressing world leaders will include Prince Charles and Sir David Attenborough, the COP26 people’s advocate.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Italian prime minister and co-host of COP26 Mario Draghi, and Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley will also speak during the ceremony.
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‘I hope and pray that COP26 takes action’
On Monday evening, Mr Johnson is due to host a reception to welcome the world leaders in attendance to Glasgow alongside the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall.
The Queen, who – it was announced last week – will not be attending the climate summit in person, will address the delegates via a pre-recorded video.
Items on the menu will include traditional Scottish canapes, Ridgeview Vintage English Sparkling Wine and COP26 blended whiskey.
Alongside the refreshments, guests will be entertained with music from a string quartet and brass quintet from the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
Speaking at the G20 summit in Rome on Saturday, the prime minister told Sky News’ Beth Rigby that success in the fight to tackle global warming “is going to very difficult” but “the whole of humanity is in the ring”.
The prime minister said there is “a chance, if everybody puts their minds to it” that an agreement on climate change can be achieved – but stressed that global temperature rises will not be stopped at COP26.
His comments came a day after he told journalists en route to the first of the global gatherings in Rome that “Team World” was “5-1” down at half-time in the battle to save the planet.
COP26 officially opens on Sunday 31 October and concludes on Friday 12 November.
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Altcoins may see a resurgence in the second quarter of 2025 as regulations for digital assets continue to improve, according to Swiss bank Sygnum.
In its Q2 2025 investment outlook, Sygnum said the space has seen “drastically improved” regulations for crypto use cases, creating the foundations for a strong alt-sector rally for the second quarter. However, it added that “none of the positive developments have been priced in.”
In April, Bitcoin dominance reached a four-year high, signaling that crypto investors are rotating their funds into an asset perceived to be relatively safer.
But Sygnum believes regulatory developments in the US, such as President Donald Trump’s establishment of a Digital Asset Stockpile and advancing stablecoin regulations, could propel broader crypto adoption.
“We expect protocols successful in gaining user traction to outperform and Bitcoin’s dominance to decline,” Sygnum wrote.
Increased focus on economic value ignites competition
Sygnum also said that competition would increase as the market focuses on economic value. Increased competition in a market often results in better products, ultimately benefiting consumers:
“The market’s increased focus on economic value compels greater competition for user growth and revenues, with rising protocols such as Toncoin, Sui, Aptos, Sonic, or Berachain taking different approaches.”
Sygnum added that while high-performance blockchains address limitations of the Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana blockchains, these chains find it challenging to achieve meaningful adoption and fee income.
The report highlighted that some approaches have been more sustainable. These include Berachain’s approach of incentivizing validators to provide liquidity to decentralized finance (DeFi) applications, Sonic’s rewarding developers that attract and retain users, and Toncoin’s Telegram affiliation to access one billion users.
Aside from layer-1 chains, Sygnum highlighted that layer-2 networks like Base also have potential. The report pointed out that while the memecoin frenzy on the blockchain pushed its users and revenue to new highs, it made an equally sharp decline after memecoins started losing steam.
Despite this, Sygnum noted that Base remains the layer-2 leader in metrics like daily transactions, throughput and total value locked.
Related: Italy finance minister warns US stablecoins pose bigger threat than tariffs
Memecoins still a leading crypto narrative in Q1
Despite recent price declines, memecoins remained a dominant crypto narrative in Q1 2025. A CoinGecko report recently highlighted that memecoins remained dominant as a crypto narrative in the first quarter of 2025. The crypto data company said memecoins had 27.1% of global investor interest, second only to artificial intelligence tokens, which had 35.7%.
While retail investors are still busy with memecoins, institutions have a different approach. Asset manager Bitwise reported on April 14 that publicly traded firms are stacking up on Bitcoin. At least twelve public companies purchased Bitcoin for the first time in Q1 2025, pushing public firm holdings to $57 billion.
Magazine: Uni students crypto ‘grooming’ scandal, 67K scammed by fake women: Asia Express
It was perhaps not quite how officials, in London at least, had envisaged the announcement of the state visit would be made.
In the Oval Office, Donald Trump revealed the news in his own way.
“I was invited by the King and the great country. They are going to do a second fest – that’s what it is. It is beautiful,” he said during an impromptu Oval Office moment.
The question was, did this “fest” – which Mr Trump suggested could happen in September – amount to the much hyped second state visit for the American president?
Or was this actually just the smaller visit that had been offered two months ago as an initial bilateral visit at which the state visit would be discussed?
Back in February, Sir Keir Starmer presented the president with a letter from King Charles and the offer of a state visit.
The letter proposed an initial meeting between the King and the president to discuss details of the state visit at either Dumfries House or Balmoral, both in Scotland, close to Mr Trump’s golf clubs.
The King wrote: “Quite apart from this presenting an opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues of mutual interest, it would also offer a valuable chance to plan a historic second state visit to the United Kingdom… As you will know this is unprecedented by a US president. That is why I would find it helpful for us to be able to discuss, together, a range of options for location and programme content.”
As he revealed the news of his “fest” with his “friend Charles”, Mr Trump said: “I think they are setting a date for September…”
Sources have since confirmed to Sky News that it will amount to the full state visit.
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Sir Keir Starmer handed Trump the invite earlier this year. Pic: Reuters
‘Even more important’
It’s possible the initial less formal presidential trip may still happen between now and September. Mr Trump is in Europe for the NATO summit in June and is due in Scotland to open a new golf course soon too.
“It is the second time it has happened to one person. The reason is we have two separate terms, and it’s an honour to be a friend of King Charles and the family, William,” the president said.
“I don’t know how it can be bigger than the last one. The last one was incredible, but they say the next one will be even more important.”
His last state visit in 2019, at the invitation of the late Queen, drew significant protests epitomised by the giant blow-up “Baby Trump” which floated over Parliament Square.
The president was hosted by the Queen in June 2019. Pic: Reuters
Britain’s trump card
September is a little earlier than had been expected for the visit. It may be an advantage for it to happen sooner rather than later, given the profoundly consequential and controversial nature of the first few months of his second term.
The decision by the British government to play its “state visit trump card” up front back in February drew some criticism.
And since February, Mr Trump’s position on numerous issues has been increasingly at odds with all of America’s allies.
On Ukraine, he has seemingly aligned himself closely with Vladimir Putin. His tariffs have caused a global economic shock. And on issues like Greenland and Canada, a member of the Commonwealth, he has generated significant diplomatic shock.
A risk worth taking
Mr Trump is as divisive among the British public as he is in America. Sir Keir is already walking a political tightrope by choosing the softly softly approach with the White House.
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The UK government chose not to retaliate against Mr Trump’s tariffs, unlike some allies. Sir Keir and his cabinet have been at pains not to be seen to criticise the president in any way as they seek to influence him on Ukraine and seek an elusive economic deal on tariffs.
On that tariff deal, despite some positive language from the US side and offers on the table, there has yet to be a breakthrough. A continuing challenge is engaging with the president for decisions and agreements only he, not his cabinet, will make.
British officials acknowledge the risk the state visit poses. In this presidency, anything could happen between now and September.
But they argue British soft power and Mr Trump’s fondness for the Royal Family and pomp – or a “fest” as he calls it – amount to vital diplomatic clout.
For a special relationship under strain, a special state visit is the tonic.
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