Last thing we need is a 'cosy consensus' on climate crisis, warns Ed Miliband

Labour's leader on climate says Boris Johnson must face up to terrifying' challenge of stopping global warming

The UK must tell the truth about the terrifying and exacting" scale of the challenge the world faces to avoid climate breakdown as it prepares to host a make or break summit of world leaders later this year, Ed Miliband has warned.

A cosy consensus" between politicians, policymakers and some NGOs, focusing on long-term net zero targets rather than short-term action, could prove disastrous, he said. Instead, Boris Johnson's government must focus on persuading countries to implement immediate far-reaching reductions in emissions and throw everything at making the conference in Glasgow in November a success, including enlisting the help of former prime ministers like Theresa May and Gordon Brown.