Greta Thunberg has today said she is not planning to attend the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) due to be held in Glasgow this November.

The 18-year-old climate campaigner explained on twitter her concerns about the impact the coronavirus pandemic is having on attendance at the most anticipated environmental event of the year.

She wrote: “Of course I would love to attend the Glasgow COP26. But not unless everyone can take part on the same terms.

“Right now many countries are vaccinating healthy young people, often at the expense of risk groups and front-line workers (mainly from global south as usual).”

The climate activist added: “Inequality and climate injustice is already the heart of the climate crisis. If people can’t be vaccinated and travel to be represented equally that’s undemocratic and would worsen the problem.

“Vaccine nationalism won’t solve the pandemic. Global problems need global solutions. But if current trends continue and the COP26 has to be delayed that doesn’t mean we have to delay the urgent action required.”

She added people don’t have to wait for conferences to drastically reduce their emissions and acknowledged that a digital solution for COP26 is ‘far from optimal’: “High-speed internet connection and access to computers is extremely unequal in the world.

“In that case, we would lack representation from those whose voices need to be heard the most when it comes to the climate crisis.”