ECONOMISTS urged the government today to increase public spending in tackling climate change and biodiversity loss to 1 per cent of gross domestic product.

Professor Nicholas Stern and experts from the London School of Economics and the University of Cambridge said that a £26 billion investment would boost growth and productivity, as they warned against the government’s plans to slash public investment.

The researchers also reported that unsustainable investments such as the development of new oil and gas fields in the North Sea and the construction of buildings that are not energy-efficient will likely damage the economy.