Boris Johnson refuses to answer why he sacked UN summit chief Claire O'Neill

Boris Johnson would not comment on Claire O'Neill's sacking
Jacob Jarvis4 February 2020
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Boris Johnson refused to answer why he sacked UN summit chief Claire O'Neill after he spoke at a COP26 event today.

The prime minister visited London's Science Museum, alongside nature broadcaster Sir David Attenborough, to discuss the COP26 climate change conference being held in November.

In a letter to Mr Johnson published by the Financial Times, she told him: "You promised to 'lead from the front' and asked me what was needed: 'Money, people, just tell us!' Sadly these promises are not close to being met."

After addressing crowds at the event today, the BBC asked Mr Johnson about her sacking.

He was asked: "Prime minister, why did you sack Claire O'Neill?"

The PM did not reply.

He was then asked: "When are you going to name her successor?"

Mr Johnson also declined to answer that query.

Earlier this morning, Ms O'Neill also spoke out against the PM on BBC Radio 4 Today, hinting that she may sue the government for being fired.

She told the show: "My advice to anybody to whom Boris is making promises - whether its voters, world leaders, ministers, employees or indeed family members - is... 'Get it in writing, get a lawyer to look at it and make sure the money is in the bank'."

She also claimed that Mr Johnson told her he "doesn't really understand" climate change, adding: "He doesn't really get it, is what he said, but others around him do."

The prime minister said he was keen to address the climate crisis in a speech he gave today.

Mr Johnson said: "We must reverse the appalling loss of habitats and species, it's only by repairing the damage to the natural world and restoring the balance between humanity and nature, that is now so grotesquely out of kilter, we can address the problem of climate change.

"At the same time, we have to deal with our CO2 emissions, and that is why the UK is calling for us to get to net zero as soon as possible, to get every country to announce credible targets to get there - that's what we want from Glasgow. And that's why we have pledged here in the UK to deliver net zero by 2050."

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in