Aotearoa New Zealand joined the alliance when it was first launched at the COP26 UN climate summit in Glasgow in 2021. The alliance aims to accelerate the managed phase-out of oil and gas production and support a just transition to clean energy.
The Government confirmed today – by way of answer to an oral question in Parliament – that it has formally withdrawn from the pact.
“This isn’t just backsliding – it’s an international embarrassment,” says WWF-New Zealand’s CEO, Dr Kayla Kingdon-Bebb.
“In what twisted reality does New Zealand’s Climate Minister stand in the House and defend the decision to use $200m of taxpayer funds to subsidise the development of new fossil fuels?
“This shocking pivot sends a clear message: New Zealand no longer takes its climate obligations seriously. We’re not just out of step with the world – we’re now actively sprinting in the wrong direction. It’s embarrassing, it’s senseless, and it comes at great risk to our exporters and our regional security interests."
Kingdon-Bebb says New Zealand’s continued retreat from climate leadership is being particularly noticed in the Pacific.
“The Coalition Government is not only turning its back on climate action – it’s also turning its back on our Pacific neighbours, who are on the frontlines of the climate crisis and have repeatedly pleaded for an end to fossil fuel expansion. We are intentionally fuelling the very crisis that threatens their lives and livelihoods – and in doing so are rapidly, and deservedly, becoming an international pariah.”
The decision also raises further serious questions about New Zealand’s compliance with its international trade obligations. Both our European Union and United Kingdom free trade agreements include 'gold standard' climate and environmental provisions, including a commitment to the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement.
In line with legal advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade accidentally released late last year, Kingdon-Bebb says New Zealand’s push to revive fossil fuel extraction in the midst of the climate crisis – including, most recently, through a $200m Government subsidy allocated in Budget 2025 for the development of new gas fields – clearly breaches those commitments and will damage critical trade relationships at a time we need them most.
“This is more than just a climate failure – it’s economic recklessness and diplomatic self-sabotage. All over the planet, investors and markets are moving toward a decarbonised future. New Zealand is choosing to go it alone, and in the wrong direction.”