Press release: 9 October 2019

ClientEarth response: Mark Carney puts deadline on climate reporting

In a speech given at the TCFD Summit in Tokyo, the governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney has urged companies to agree rules for reporting climate risks before global regulators devise their own.

Joanne Etherton, climate finance lawyer at ClientEarth, said: “Governor Carney is crystal clear that companies must raise their game on climate-related reporting. Firms need to prove their strategic resilience to investors and regulators, illustrating how they are addressing the financial risks arising from climate change. The materiality of those risks is now beyond doubt.

“The TCFD framework is now the global industry standard and to fulfil clear investor and regulatory demands, and companies’ own legal duties, it’s hard to imagine a credible excuse not to use it.

“To get ahead of inevitable regulatory trends and investor pressure, companies urgently need to align their business strategies to Paris Agreement goals. Disclosure is an essential first step.”

ENDS

About ClientEarth

ClientEarth is a charity that uses the power of the law to protect people and the planet. We are international lawyers finding practical solutions for the world’s biggest environmental challenges. We are fighting climate change, protecting oceans and wildlife, making forest governance stronger, greening energy, making business more responsible and pushing for government transparency. We believe the law is a tool for positive change. From our offices in London, Brussels, Warsaw, Berlin and Beijing, we work on laws throughout their lifetime, from the earliest stages to implementation. And when those laws are broken, we go to court to enforce them.