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Handing vital infrastructure to private investment companies will generate windfalls for investors and leave the rest of us worse off. We need a better plan

• Daniela Gabor is professor of economics and macrofinance at UWE Bristol

The Labour party has a plan for returning to power: it will get BlackRock to rebuild Britain. Its reasoning is straightforward. A cash-strapped government that wants to avoid tax increases or austerity has no choice but to partner with big finance, attracting private investment to rebuild the infrastructure that is crumbling after years of Tory underinvestment. Labour has already done the arithmetic: to mobilise £3 of private capital from institutional investors, you need to offer them £1 in public subsidies. But every time you hear Labour announce such an infrastructure partnership, think of the hidden politics. BlackRock will privatise Britain – our housing, education, health, nature and green energy – with our taxpayer money as sweetener.

BlackRock has long peddled the idea of public-private partnerships for infrastructure, climate and development. Yet its political momentum has recently accelerated. When its chair, Larry Fink, the world’s most powerful financier, sat with world leaders at the G7 summit last month, he promised the following: rich countries need growth, infrastructure investment can deliver that growth, but public debt is too high for the state alone to invest the estimated $75tn (£59tn) necessary by 2040. Trillions, however, are available to asset managers who look after our pensions and insurance contributions (BlackRock, the largest of these firms, manages about $10tn, as a shrinking welfare state pushes us – future pensioners – into its arms).

Daniela Gabor is professor of economics and macrofinance at UWE Bristol

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Energy-intensive companies facing indirect emission costs in Germany will benefit from billions worth of state aid compensation, as the European Commission approved on Tuesday some amendments proposed to an existing national scheme.

Biodiversity is increasingly included as a key performance indicator (KPI) in sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs), as the market is expected to accelerate compared to last year, a UN Development Programme (UNDP) official has said.

Decision by supreme court means water companies could be sued for damage caused by dumping of human waste

Water companies could face a spate of legal challenges by people and businesses affected by sewage pollution after a ruling that United Utilities could be sued by a private company for damage caused by the dumping of human waste.

Lawyers said it was a “watershed moment” as the courts had previously ruled that penalties for water companies were a matter for the regulator, and companies could not sue firms for damage caused to their property by sewage pollution.

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A group of financial institutions and consultancies have joined forces with a research institute to improve the assessment of biodiversity-related risks and opportunities to the financial sector, including estimating the economic impact of nature loss.

The Egyptian cabinet is in the final stages of drafting carbon tax legislation under its forthcoming 2024-30 tax policy strategy, with the final version expected before the end of the year, according to Egyptian media sources.

Canada’s pilot for enabling companies to earn government-issued certificates for conservation achievements will remain small scale, an expert has predicted.

Long-distance travel is a disproportionately large contributor to the UK’s transport-related carbon emissions, researchers have found, prompting them to propose a new new metric to evaluate the effectiveness of reducing travel demand on CO2 output.

Dropoff in government approvals put billions of investment in offshore wind schemes at risk, ports bodies warn

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The UK’s transition to net zero is under threat as delays in approving new infrastructure put billions of pounds of investment in offshore wind schemes and other vital upgrades at risk, big ports have said.

The British Ports Association (BPA) has written to the government and Labour calling for action to clear the backlog of harbour orders, the legislation needed for ports to make infrastructure changes to support offshore wind projects.

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A European agtech firm has secured €10 million in a second round of funding to boost its network of soil carbon removals projects, and plans to raise another €2-4 mln this year.

European carbon allowances were little changed at midday on Tuesday amid broadly stable energy prices, as traders reported a "boring" market that reflected the onset of the summer holiday season, while UK allowance trading slowed down as participants began to focus on Thursday's general election.

The Malaysian government will make sure that its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goals are not undermined by the sale of carbon credits abroad, the country’s natural resources minister told parliament Tuesday.

German-headquartered retailer Lidl has partnered with conservation organisation WWF to enhance biodiversity protection throughout its value chain across 31 countries.

Taiwan has finalised regulations for the trading of domestically issued emissions reductions units, as the island seeks to complement a proposed carbon levy scheme that will be introduced in the next few years.

The Clean Cooking & Climate Consortium (4C), led by the Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA), has released a new methodology for crediting emissions reductions from cooking projects hoping to lend credibility to the market and boost investor confidence.

More than 80 non-profits have called for a carbon offset ban in climate regulations and company guidelines, arguing that they distract corporates from real decarbonisation.

A US-based soil carbon removals platform has put itself up for sale amid challenges in the wider voluntary market, Carbon Pulse has learned.

Proposal would create first federal standard for workplace exposure to extreme heat, which kills hundreds each year

The Biden administration has unveiled a long-awaited proposal to protect workers from extreme temperatures. If finalized, the rule will establish the nation’s first-ever federal safety standard for excessive heat exposure in the workplace and protect as many as 36 million indoor and outdoor workers.

Announced on Tuesday amid temperature warnings across the country, the rule would require employers to establish a heat safety coordinators, undergo extreme heat safety training, create and regularly update emergency heat response plans, and provide workers with shade and water.

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Two US companies have unveiled a new soil carbon methodology that will credit farmers for implementing sustainable practices as well as the resulting removal and storage of CO2.

China's environment ministry is proposing moderate reductions in the number of CO2 allowances it will hand out for 2023 and 2024 in the national emissions trading scheme compared to the previous trading period and provide more clarity on permit carryover rules, according to a draft allocation plan released Tuesday.