Trump quiet as the UN warns of climate change catastrophe

President says he 'will be looking at' report warning 'unprecedented' changes needed to avoid extreme heat, floods and poverty

Faced with a major UN report that warns of floods, drought, extreme heat and increased poverty should the world not take radical action to address climate change, Donald Trump has been uncharacteristically quiet.

The US president was visiting Florida, a state particularly vulnerable to sea level rise and currently in the path of Hurricane Michael, when the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report warned on Monday that "unprecedented" changes were needed to stave off dire impacts if the world warms 1.5C beyond the pre-industrial period.