By Bill Heaney
Pope Leo XIV has hit out at those who minimise the “increasingly evident” impact of rising temperatures in his first major statement on climate change.
Reiterating the words of his predecessor Pope Francis, the new pontiff lambasted critics who “ridicule those who speak of global warming”.
The Pope’s remarks, at a speech in Castel Gondolfo near Rome, will be seen as an implied criticism of US President Donald Trump, who last month called climate change a “con”.
Pope Leo also called for greater action from citizens the world over on climate change, saying there was no room for indifference or resignation.
The Pope was speaking at a conference to mark 10 years since the publication of Laudato Si’.
That landmark document, written by his predecessor Pope Francis, made the issue of climate a central part of the church’s concerns.
Many credit it for helping set the tone that led to the Paris climate agreement in 2015.
But the new Pope, who was elected in May, was worried that the question of climate change was now becoming more divisive.
Referring to his predecessor’s writings, he said: “Some have chosen to deride the increasingly evident signs of climate change, to ridicule those who speak of global warming, and even to blame the poor for the very thing that affects them the most.”
Just two weeks ago at the UN General Assembly in New York, US President Donald Trump criticised the climate movement as the “greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world”, and rebuffed the use of renewable energy.
“The carbon footprint is a hoax made up by people with evil intentions, and they’re heading down a path of total destruction,” he said.
Pope Leo, the first pontiff born in the US, has previously clashed with Trump’s White House on issues including migration and national security.
In Wednesday’s speech, the Pope called for people all over the world to put increased pressure on politicians.
Citizens need to take an active role in political decisions, he said, as “only then will it be possible to mitigate the damage done to the environment”.
The Pope said that each of us will have to answer a question from God.
“God will ask us if we have cultivated and cared for the world that he created for the benefit of all and for future generations, and if we have taken care of our brothers and sisters – what will be our answer, my dear friends?”
The Raising Hope conference was held just over a month from the start of COP30 in Belém, in Brazil.
World leaders and climate diplomats will meet in the Amazonian city as efforts to tackle rising emissions of planet warming gases have fallen down the political agenda.
Brazilian Environment Minister Marina Silva invited the Pope to COP30 on behalf of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
“I am convinced in this way His Holiness will make an indispensable contribution so that COP30 may go down in history as the great moment of implementation,” she said.
Today’s meeting also heard from former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said the Pope was a real world “action hero”, as he had committed to putting solar panels on all the Vatican’s buildings.
Meanwhile, here is Scotland, still on the weather front, travellers have been warned of disruption later as Storm Amy is set to hit parts of the country with winds of up to 100mph in some exposed areas.
An amber warning for high winds has been issued for large parts of north and north western Scotland from 17:00 to 21:00 on Saturday. This includes West Dunbartonshire and Argyll and Bute.
A number of ScotRail and ferry services have been cancelled ahead of the storm’s arrival, while some bridges, including the Erskine Bridge, will be closed to high sided vehicles.
A Met Office yellow warning for heavy rain has also been issued for where hundreds of schools have already closed ahead of the storm’s arrival.
Amy is the first named storm of the season. In the amber warning area, peak wind speeds of up to 70 mph are forecast to be widespread.
Exposed areas, particularly around Tiree, western Lochaber and Skye, could be hit by gusts of up to 100mph for a time this evening.
A wider yellow warning for winds to up to 60mph – and up to 70mph in exposed areas – covers all of Scotland.
Scotland’s transport secretary, Fiona Hyslop, asked people to check before they travel.
She said: “We are urging people planning to travel on trains, ferries and flights to contact their operators to find out if their service is affected.
“Motorists will face difficult driving conditions, so it’s vital people plan ahead if they have to travel to see if their route is impacted by the weather.”
Transport disruption:
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Traffic at the Rest and Be Thankful in Argyll has been diverted on to the Old Military Road. Traffic Scotland said it was monitoring conditions.
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Delays and cancellations to routes on CalMac’s west coast ferry network. It asked passengers to check its website for updates.
Some ferry crossings between Cairnryan and Northern Ireland cancelled from 12:00.
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Forth Road Bridge expected to close to all vehicles, while other bridges including Erskine may have restrictions on high-sided vehicles.
Police Scotland said a number of ferry crossings between Cairnryan, in Dumfries and Galloway, and Northern Ireland would be cancelled from 12:00.
The force advised those booked onto affected sailings not to travel to the area as long delays are expected.
Officers also said customers should check with Stena Line and P&O Ferries for updates.
Freight drivers are encouraged to contact port authorities for more information.
Network Rail said its specialist weather team would be closely monitoring the storm’s path and working with ScotRail to confirm the routes are most likely to be impacted.
David Ross, ScotRail chef operating officer, said many services in the north of the country would be severely impacted by the conditions.
He also warned problems may continue into the weekend due to trains being out of position and potential debris on the line.
Mr Ross told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland: “We find that during disruption, it is very difficult to secure replacement buses late on in the day when we have severe weather and severe wind.
“Colleagues will be out inspecting the tracks, they’ll be doing visual inspections from the air and if we find there are a significant number of trees down, that might take a bit longer to get services back up and running.”
He told the programme that passengers with pre-booked tickets for Friday could also use them on Saturday and Sunday.
Serious weather event
Police Scotland’s Ch Supt Scott McCarren, head of road policing, said drivers should drive to the conditions and be aware of increased stopping distances.
Motoring organisation the AA also urged drivers to avoid taking risks.
The AA’s Shaun Jones said: “Storm Amy is shaping up to be a serious weather event, and we’re already seeing signs of disruption.”
Traffic Scotland operator manager Douglas Cairns urged anyone planning to travel to consider whether their journey was “absolutely necessary”.
He told Good Morning Scotland: “It comes down to that personal choice, whether you think it is safe, if you are competent and you’re not putting yourself and others at risk while you are travelling.
“If you are travelling, make sure you have sufficient equipment such as a warm jacket, you have food, your mobile phone is topped up with charge and that your vehicle is able to travel in the conditions.”
Power firm SSEN has issued its own yellow alert.
It said text messages were being sent to more than 180,000 of its more vulnerable customers, giving them help and advice in the event they lose power.
The United Rugby Championship (URC) fixture between Edinburgh and Ulster, which had been due to take place on Friday evening, has been postponed due to the adverse conditions.
The junior and mini Great Scottish Run in Glasgow on Saturday have been cancelled due to the weather warning.
Organisers said the strong winds and rain would create a risk of debris for the Glasgow Green events, which also included a toddler dash.
Il Papa’s correct here.
More leading figures need to call out Trump more & often.