Audit proposals not enough to clean-up scandal-ridden industry, campaigners say

The UK government’s audit reform proposals don’t go far enough to fix the scandal-ridden industry, not least because they fail to adequately cover fundamental issues like climate change and reform of underlying accounting principles, warned 9 campaign groups and experts including Greenpeace, ClientEarth, the Fair Tax Foundation and academics from Sheffield and City Universities. Professor Atul Shah, City University, said: “It’s been over 4 years since the Carillion scandal, but despite numerous reports and a parliamentary inquiry the government has set out watered down plans with no clear implementation date.…

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World’s top banks risk billions by investing in plastics – new report

Several of the world’s biggest international banks have collectively invested almost €22 billion in just two petrochemical companies over the past five years, exposing themselves to significant financial risk, according to a new study. The report, from Belgian sustainable finance experts FairFin and commissioned by ClientEarth, reveals that between 2016 and 2021, banks including JP Morgan Chase, Barclays, HSBC, Citigroup, BNP Paribas, and ING Group invested nearly €22bn in petrochemical companies INEOS and Borealis. Petrochemicals companies produce plastics, which are derived from fossil fuels. There are major economic risks for…

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Lawyers take action against BP’s climate “greenwashing” advertising campaign

Environmental lawyers from ClientEarth have today filed a high-level complaint against oil giant BP, claiming that it is misleading consumers about its focus on low carbon energy and solutions to climate change in its multimillion pound advertising campaign. They are backing up the complaint with a call for a ban on all fossil fuel advertising unless it comes with a tobacco-style health warning about the dangers to the planet and people. The lawyers have triggered an official complaints procedure against the fossil fuel company under the guidelines of the OECD,…

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BMB and ClientEarth create Poision Playgrounds Campaign

BMB and ClientEarth have created a new film in response to the government’s new Air Quality Plan. ClientEarth feels the new Government plan is inadequate. ClientEarth claim: “Across the country, children are exposed to illegal and harmful levels of air pollution while on their way to and at school. In the UK, pupils at almost 1,000 schools are exposed to NO2 levels that endanger their health and will shape their future wellbeing. Traffic pollution contains nitrogen dioxide, NO2, as well as microscopic soot particles – known as “particulate matter” (PM) –…

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