A new expert body set up to advise the government on the security threats posed by climate change and nature loss has held its first meeting, according to the government. The National Security and Resilience Risks of a Changing Climate and Nature Loss Taskforce brings together specialists from the military, security services, academia and industry.

Key points

  • Who chairs it — Climate Transition minister Katie White, alongside Baroness Fiona Twycross.
  • Who sits on it — figures including General Richard Nugee, Comfort Ero of the International Crisis Group and Rosie Hails of the National Trust.
  • What it does — identify the biggest climate and nature risks to the UK and recommend how to prepare for them.
  • Why now — the meeting follows the UK's hottest summer on record and warnings of a super El Niño.

The taskforce has been asked to pinpoint the most serious climate- and nature-related risks facing the country, challenge existing work on resilience and set out recommendations for improving preparedness at home and abroad. Its members include Nick Bridge of Chatham House, Edd Denbee of the Bank of England, Professor Nathalie Pettorelli of the Institute of Zoology and Erin Sikorsky of the Centre for Climate Risks and Security.

Katie White said this summer had brought destroyed homes, evacuations and wildfires across the British countryside, and that climate change was "happening right now" rather than being a distant concern. She said national security begins at home, protecting the people and places we love, and that the taskforce would draw on Britain's best minds to get ahead of these threats.

Erin Sikorsky said the season's heatwaves and wildfires had shown that climate change is already a security problem, and that the question now is how to prepare, prevent and adapt. The government says the effects of a changing climate reach into migration, energy systems, supply chains and financial stability.

Editor's comment

What it means in practice

This is an advisory body, so nothing changes for households on the day it meets. Its recommendations could eventually shape spending on flood defences, power networks and emergency planning — the kind of decisions that show up in insurance premiums, disruption to travel and how quickly services recover after severe weather.

  • Watch for recommendations — any proposals on flood risk and infrastructure will matter most to people in areas hit repeatedly by extreme weather.
  • No immediate change — there are no new rules, payments or documents for the public at this stage.