COP26 was important to Rolls-Royce because the messages were all about urgency and getting on with the energy transition now. It was also about getting that urgency into the policymakers so that we have the right policy environment in which we operate as a business to make that transition as fast as possible.
Representing Rolls-Royce at COP26 still feels like a very new thing to do. A few years ago, we wouldn't have had Rolls-Royce at a climate conference, but today our business and the future of our business is all about the energy transition.
This summer we published our net zero report. We pioneer the power that matters, but at the moment much of the power we create produces carbon dioxide and is damaging to the environment. That's what needs to change as we move from here to net zero. So, Rolls-Royce absolutely has a place at COP26, and I think Rolls-Royce will have a place at the future COP conferences going forward.
I've been pleasantly surprised by the reaction to Rolls-Royce being at COP26, and I think that's indicative of the fact that people understand that we are part of the solution to climate change and not just part of the problem. This has been very encouraging and I've seen it in terms of the amount of engagement that we've had, the number of people who came to visit our stand, the amount of people who wanted to talk to me and the team, and I've even seen it on social media in some of the comments attached to pieces of mainline media that have been produced, so I'm very encouraged.