Boris Johnson declares he is "the spirit of Glasgow" at COP 27

Boris Johnson has said is "the spirit of Glasgow" at COP 27 and that significant progress has been made since the last climate summit.

The former PM told a fringe event at the global climate meet: "I am the spirit of Glasgow, that is what I am doing here.

"I am the spirit of Glasgow COP26 and it is incredible to think how much has changed since that last COP and to be frank how much damage has been done in just one year to our great common purpose of tackling man-made climate change.”

Johnson added that there was "no miracle escape from the inundations and other potentially disastrous consequences of climate change" and that the battle against rising temperature is "one of the most important collateral victims" of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Boris Johnson declared himself as the spirit of Glasgow at COP 27.

He hit out at his own party and climate change policy of some of the Conservative MPs stating that some wanted to "frack the hell out of the British countryside".

The former PM suggested the soaring temperatures in London over the summer may have contributed to the political turmoil which led to his exit from No 10.

In an apparently tongue-in-cheek comment at an event on the fringe of the COP 27 summit, the former prime minister said: “Temperatures in London this July reached 40 degrees, which is unprecedented and almost unbearable by United Kingdom standards – perhaps even contributing, who knows, to unexpected political turmoil that we saw in Westminster at that time.”

Rishi Sunak is due to deliver his own speech this afternoon – as is Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.