The Pope has told oil company bosses that climate change threatens the future of the “human family”. The oil executives had been invited to the Vatican in Rome for an audience with the pontiff. Pope Francis said a radical energy transition is needed to save what he called “our common home”.

The head of BP agreed that the world must find urgent solutions to environmental problems – but said all must play a part. The Pope warned him and other bosses: “Civilisation requires energy, but energy use must not destroy civilisation.” The oil bosses were brought to the Vatican alongside fund managers who invest in their stocks. The companies represented were believed to include Eni, Exxon, Total, Repsol, BP, Sinopec, ConocoPhillips, Equinor, and Chevron.

A small group of demonstrators gathered outside a Vatican gate. One held a sign reading “Dear Oil CEOs – Think of Your Children”. The executives were given a dressing down by the former Irish premier Mary Robinson. She said: “We should all salute the courage the Holy Father has shown on climate change when too many secular leaders have spurned their responsibilities.” Ms Robinson asked the oil bosses: “What could be more cynical than still seeking to exploit fossil fuel reserves when the scientific evidence is abundantly clear that we need to end all combustion of fossil fuels by 2050?”

She said the energy transition would require a massive shift of capital to clean energy and warned: “If some industries fail to adjust to this new word, they will fail to exist.” In a statement, BP said its CEO Bob Dudley was “honoured to participate at the Vatican“.(BBC)…[+]