Leeds MP meets with Pope ahead of Cop26 climate summit

A Labour MP met with Pope Francis this week ahead of the Cop26 climate summit.

Alex Sobel, the MP for Leeds North West, was among the delegation addressed by the Pope ahead of November’s UN climate conference in Glasgow.

Last week the Vatican confirmed that the Pope, who is 84-years-old and recently underwent colon surgery, would not be attending the summit.

Speaking to an international cohort of parliamentary representatives in Rome this weekend, the Pope referred to the “crucial” need for politicians to help tackle environmental issues, saying that “everyone has a role to play”.

He called on parliamentarians to ensure the “fundamental virtues of good politics” and urged them to contribute to combatting climate change.

Mr Sobel serves as the Cop26 Rapporteur for the British Group Inter-Parliamentary Union.