MSPS have been warned not to turn their attention away from the climate emergency after taking part in the final vote on the Climate Change Bill this week.

Oxfam urged politicians to ensure Scotland meets its global responsibilities by writing stricter emissions targets into the law before the Holyrood vote this Wednesday. The call came as the Scottish Greens urged the Scottish Government to go further in the legislation and lodged an amendment to bring the timescale to reduce emissions forward.

Oxfam Scotland head Jamie Livingstone stressed the Government has a moral obligation to countries grappling with the impact of the climate emergency. To do this the charity says it wants the SNP to renew its Climate Justice Fund – cash set aside to help those poorest and most vulnerable countries – which has sat at £3 million per year since 2016.

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Livingstone said: “The world’s poorest people are already on the front line of climate-charged emergencies and they quite literally cannot afford for us to pass this Bill and then forget about them.

“It is simply wrong that people in the world’s poorest countries are receiving a pittance for the climate disaster which countries like Scotland have, and continue to create, through our emissions. Wealthy governments are failing to live up to their promise to help poor nations adapt to the climate crisis and they must more.

“Ensuring tougher emissions targets are written into law in Scotland is only one step in our fight for climate justice. If Scotland is to be a world leader on climate, then Scotland’s leaders must make sure we are living up to our moral obligation, including reviewing and increasing how much we spend on the Climate Justice Fund.”

The push came as the charity’s new report, published today, highlights how people in Mozambique and the Horn of Africa are facing mounting human and financial costs from climate-related disasters they did least to create.

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The study also revealed that people living in the poorest countries receive around $3 per year – less than one cent per day – to protect themselves from the devastating impacts of the climate crisis.

With the annual UN climate talks – known as COP26 – also coming to Glasgow next year, Oxfam says it wants Scotland to ramp up the support available in order to truly be a world leader on climate justice. Oxfam added this must be done at the same time as emissions are reduced.

After declaring a climate emergency in April, the SNP proposed a new target of net-zero climate

emissions by 2045 and a commitment to reach 70% reductions in emissions by 2030. Some climate campaign groups have said the measures do not go far enough.

After former UK chief scientist professor Sir David King called on governments to bring their plans to reduce emissions forward after finding extreme events linked to global warming – like wildfires in the Arctic, ice melting at the poles and Hurricane Dorian – were happening sooner than expected, the Greens repeated their warning to the Government.

Scottish Green environment spokesperson Mark Ruskell said: “By 2045, 16-year old climate strikers who are worried about their future will be 42 years old.

“Scotland has a fantastic opportunity to play a leading role in this crisis, but we need to keep up with events. I have lodged an amendment to commit to an 80% reduction by 2030, which is what the experts and NGOs in Stop Climate Chaos are calling for.

“Other parties need to match our ambition to build a future for all through a Scottish Green New Deal, if we are to recognise the urgency of the climate emergency.”