With the COP presidency still in hand, the UK is struggling to “walk the talk” when it comes to green promises, writes the Financial Times. Since COP26 in Glasgow, the UK COP team have been meeting with delegations from countries around the world to hammer out green agreements. Britain is also working to push the global implementation of the broad agreements delivered in Glasgow, which focus on coal, carbon markets, financing for developing nations and national climate targets. At the same time, however, UK leaders have failed to stick to a common narrative around the green transition, instead defending new oil and gas projects and refusing to impose a windfall tax on the sector as surging energy costs put pressure on households and companies.

Climate targets are taking a backseat thanks to the energy crisis, which is “squeezing the political space for countries to focus on their climate change policy,” Alex Scott, who works at the climate think-tank E3G, told the FT. This is putting the UK’s COP team in the tricky position of pushing other countries to accelerate their green energy plans at the same time as the government stalls on its own domestic climate agenda.

Egypt will be handed the COP presidency in November as the country hosts COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh. Until then, it’s likely that Egypt will increase its diplomatic push ahead of the climate forum, similar to the 460 UK climate attaches who helped to lobby ministers worldwide ahead of Glasgow, the FT writes.

SIGN OF THE TIMES- Automotive players are reskilling for the electric future: Bosch, Europe’s premier auto parts supplier, will spend EUR 2 bn to retrain its workers for the shift from fuel-powered engines to electric vehicles, the FT reports. The German company’s move aims to limit job losses caused by the EU’s plan to ban new fossil-fuel cars by 2035, which threatens the livelihood of thousands of workers across the continent.