The power behind the PM? Keir Starmer pictured with Tony Blair at COP29 summit as ex-premier provides 'unofficial' climate advice to leaders - having once helped hosts Azerbaijan plan 'carbon bomb' gas pipeline

By DAVID WILCOCK, DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR

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Sir Keir Starmer met with Sir Tony Blair at the Cop29 climate summit as the former PM schmoozed world leaders to 'advance the global climate agenda'. 

The former and current premier were pictured together meeting Iraqi Kurdish leader Nechirvan Barzani at the event in Baku. Sir Tony was also pictured meeting with Cop29 president Mukhtar Babayev, and Uzbekistan president Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

It came days after Sir Keir named Jonathan Powell, Sir Tony's Downing Street chief of staff for a decade, his new national security adviser, despite criticism of his role in handing over control of the Chagos Islands.

The annual UN climate event has seen questions raised about the hosts' commitment to environmental measures, after president Ilham Aliyev told stunned delegates that its huge natural gas reserves were 'a gift of god'.

Sir Tony is attending alongside policy experts from the non-profit Tony Blair Institute, which said he has no 'official role' at the event.

It also provided assistance to last year's Cop28 event in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates.

And it is not his first role in Azerbaijan. A decade ago he acted as an adviser on a gas pipeline linking the Caspian nation with western Europe, which was the pet project of president Aliyev. 

It was criticised by climate activists at the time as a 'carbon bomb', although its backers point out it now provides 16 per cent of Europe's gas supply, reducing reliance on Russia.

The former and current premier were pictured together meeting Iraqi Kurdish leader Nechirvan Barzani at the event in Baku.

The former and current premier were pictured together meeting Iraqi Kurdish leader Nechirvan Barzani at the event in Baku.

Sir Tony is believing to be acting as an advisor to the Azerbaijan government alongside a dozen staff from the non-profit Tony Blair Institute.

Sir Tony is believing to be acting as an advisor to the Azerbaijan government alongside a dozen staff from the non-profit Tony Blair Institute.

It also provided assistance to last year's Cop28 event in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, where Sir Tony met with Rishi Sunak

It also provided assistance to last year's Cop28 event in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, where Sir Tony met with Rishi Sunak

Mr Blair faced criticism in 2014 for agreeing a deal to advise the developers of a gas pipeline backed by the Aliyev regime, which was accused of human rights abuses.

And in 2009 he was branded an 'embarrassment to Britain' by an MP after it was revealed he made an estimated £75 per second for a speech in the country.

 The former prime minister is thought to have been paid around £90,000 for his 1,000-word speech endorsing a new power plant, which is likely to have taken no more than 20 minutes to deliver.

In 2016 the ex-PM defended his work, saying 80 per cent of it was unpaid, and much of what he did earn was ploughed back into the TBI, which has several hundred staff.   

A TBI spokeswoman said: 'The Tony Blair Institute works to advance the global climate agenda. It is clear that there is an urgent need to shift climate strategies to address global emissions. 

'That is why we are offering strategic and policy insights to drive meaningful change at COP29, as we did last year and will do in the future.

'TBI has a number of policy experts at COP29, as we have had in previous years. They are contributing to panels, roundtables and supporting countries with which we work. Mr Blair had no official role.'

It came as it was claimed Brits will have to get heat pumps, electric cars and even eat less meat to hit Keir Starmer's new climate target.

The PM unveiled a pledge to cut UK greenhouse gas emissions by 81 per cent by 2035 in Azerbaijan yesterday.

He insisted it was possible to meet the goal without telling people 'how to live their lives', arguing that decarbonising the power network was the key. 

However, the government's Climate Change Committee (CCC) - which originally laid out the aim - has made clear that other changes, such more vegetarian and vegan diets and less travel, would also be needed.

CCC head Emma Pinchbeck told the Telegraph: 'They've done the job with working out how to get a lot of clean, cheap domestic electricity. 

'We need to get technologies into people's homes so they can use the electricity. What we're looking for is progress on heat decarbonisation and transport decarbonisation and renewables.'

Keir StarmerAzerbaijanTony Blair

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