Britain appoints Alok Sharma to chair Transition Finance Council

LONDON (Reuters) - The UK government and City of London Corporation have chosen Alok Sharma to chair the Transition Finance Council, as Britain bids to become a global hub for financial products and services that facilitate an economy-wide transition to net zero.

Former Conservative minister Sharma, who served as Secretary of State for International Development in 2019 and Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in 2020, played a key role in securing the COP26 Glasgow Climate Pact which included commitments on promoting sustainable finance.

"We want to lead the world in sustainable finance," finance minister Rachel Reeves said in a statement, adding that promoting investment flows into green industries would create jobs and drive the government's "number one mission" for growth. 

The Transition Finance Council launch by the government and the body which governs London's Square Mile business district was a key recommendation of the October 2024 Transition Finance Market Review, which outlined ways in which banks and credit providers could work with companies to reduce carbon emissions.

"...Sharma has been a tireless advocate for climate action," Ed Miliband, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, also said in the statement.

"Clean energy is the economic and industrial opportunity of the 21st century, and transition finance can help to accelerate investment into these sectors," he added.

News of Sharma's appointment comes at an anxious time for those seeking global political cohesion in a battle against climate change.

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to scrap the country's national emissions-cutting plan and potentially also Biden-era tax credits for CO2-cutting projects, while several of Wall Street's biggest banks and asset managers have pulled out of a U.N.-backed banking alliance amid Republican pressure.

Irem Yerdelen, Lead Member for Sustainable Finance, has been named deputy chair of the Transition Finance Council.

(Reporting By Sinead Cruise; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)