UK ‘only’ contributes 1% global emissions – but alongside many other countries, that all adds up

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The UK represented just 0.81% of global CO₂ emissions from fossil fuels and industry in 2024. That’s a small proportion of the global total, so perhaps it’s easy to suggest that the responsibility to cut emissions should instead lie with bigger emitters like China, the US and India.

But with many countries contributing the same seemingly small proportion of global CO₂ concentrations, this whataboutism ignores the fundamental responsibility we all share. This 1% statistic hides the true picture of UK emissions and ignores the fact that the climate crisis is a global crisis.