Anne-Marie Trevelyan told the International Civil Aviation Organization Assembly that decarbonising the aviation sector requires global action.

The UK attended the assembly with the aim of reaching agreements that help secure the sustainability and resilience of global aviation.

During the Transport Secretary’s opening statement, ICAO – the United Nations’ body in charge of ensuring aviation is safe, secure and environmentally friendly – was urged to adopt a long-term goal to clean up the sector and reduce its emissions in line with the Paris Agreement.

The Secretary of State for Transport also highlighted the need for countries around the world to learn lessons from the international response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to ensure the global aviation sector is better prepared for future threats, such as public health crises.

Her intervention comes after the International Aviation Climate Ambition Coalition, launched by the UK at COP26, met on Monday in Montreal.

Now bringing together governments from 56 countries across the world, the coalition calls for ambitious action by ICAO and is committed to promoting the use of new fuels and technologies to tackle aviation’s contribution to climate change.