Prince of Wales to drop all fossil fuel investments

The Prince of Wales will get rid all of fossil fuel investments from his financial interests, joining the growing list of supporters of a UN-backed divestment campaign.

The campaign is urging investors to sell their stakes in coal, oil and gas in order to avoid critical levels of greenhouse gas emissions that could lead to dangerous temperature rises.

According to reports, Buckingham Palace has said Prince Charles’ “private investments and his charitable foundation do not have any fossil fuel holdings”.

The UN’s campaign has been joined by seven UK-based foundations, worth a combined £234 million, which have pledged to sell their fossil fuel investments and re-invest the money in sustainable organisations.

A statement from the group, which includes three trusts linked to the Sainsbury family, said pledges by governments to act on climate change and tumbling renewable energy costs meant fossil fuels were no longer sound investments.

In a statement, the group comprising the Mark Leonard Trust, the JJ Charitable Trust, the Ashden Trust, the Waterloo Foundation, the Tellus Mater Foundation, the Polden-Puckham Charitable Foundation and the Frederick Mulder Foundation, said: “Fossil fuel companies have not taken the opportunity to wind down or change their business models. They are now significantly overvalued. The half a trillion dollars spent annually seeking new reserves will be wasted. The smart investors have already divested from coal.”

The statement said that divestment was also a moral issue and added: “We aim to support, not undermine, our philanthropic work to address poverty, improve health and protect the earth’s life support systems. We cannot, in good conscience, invest in companies that are accelerating climate change, which disproportionately affects the poor.”