Anthony Albanese backs King Charles’s climate crusade at Commonwealth talk-fest

As Australia and UK signed a new partnership to beef-up their collaboration on climate change, King Charles said the world was “well past believing it is a problem for the future”.

King Charles III speaks during the opening of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) on October 25, 2024 in Apia. (Photo by Ian Vogler-Pool/Getty Images)

Anthony Albanese has defended the King’s interventions on climate change in Australia and Samoa, saying the issue is “above politics” in most parts of the world.

As Australia and UK signed a partnership to bolster collaboration on climate change, Charles said the world was “well past ­believing it is a problem for the future” and urged for Commonwealth countries to do more.

“I can only offer every encouragement for action with unequivocal determination to arrest rising temperatures by cutting emissions, building resilience as far as possible to both the current and forecast impacts of climate change in conserving and restoring nature, both on land and in the sea,” he told a gathering of Commonwealth leaders in Apia.

“This year alone, we have seen terrifying storms in the Carib­bean, devastating flooding in East Africa and catastrophic wildfires in Canada. Lives, livelihoods and human rights are at risk across the Commonwealth.”

His comments follow an ­address in Canberra this week in which the King singled out renewables as key to fighting climate change, something that drew criticism from Coalition backbenchers including Nationals senator Matt Canavan who said it would be best if Charles “stays out of contemporary political debates”.

Anthony Albanese attends the opening ceremony of CHOGM at the Tuanaimato Conference Centre on October 25, 2024 in Apia, Samoa.. (Photo by Fiona Goodall/Getty Images)

Mr Albanese hit back at the suggestion the King’s views on climate change were overly political and inappropriate for a monarch.

“In most parts of the world, with very few exceptions, climate change is above politics,” Mr ­Albanese said following a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer focused mostly on climate action.

“It is about a substantial threat that exists in countries like Tuvalu and Kirra bus, it’s about the world in which we live, it’s about our native fauna and flora, it’s about the natural disasters we were warned would increase in intensity and in frequency, and that is precisely what we are seeing in Australia but in other parts of the world as well.”

Mr Albanese pointed to the fact one of the first world leaders to recognise the challenge of climate change and a British Conservative – Margaret Thatcher.

King Charles III visits The King's Garden, in the grounds of the Robert Louis Stevenson Museum on October 25, 2024 in Apia, Samoa. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

The Labor leader shrugged off criticism from countries like Tuvalu in recent days, which claimed Australia was not acting in ­accordance with its net-zero ­targets. “I have had positive discussions with … Pacific leaders here,” he said. “I must say the feedback I’ve had from Pacific leaders have been very welcoming of Australia’s leadership … when it comes to climate action.”

Australia and Britain on Friday signed a partnership that will see the countries work more closely to roll out projects in ­hydrogen and offshore wind in particular, with the details of the deal to be discussed by the ­respective climate ministers.

“We both are on the path to net zero through the transition, and we see that as an opportunity for new industries, new jobs and a new industrialisation of our ­respective countries,” Mr Albanese said.

“There’s a real opportunity for us to develop technologies together to make a difference, as well as look at co-operation in areas such as climate finance.” The two countries also agreed to give UK better access to Australian critical minerals, as well discussing how to increase private sector investment in renewables – particularly in the superannuation industry.

Anthony Albanese with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Picture supplied

As part of his bold speech on climate action across the Commonwealth, King Charles also recognised the enduring pain of some countries over Britain’s slave trade.

“Our cohesion requires that we acknowledge where we have come from. I understand from listening to people across the Commonwealth how the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate,” he said.

“None of us can change the past, but we can commit with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to right inequalities that endure.”