Countdown’s Susie Dent effortlessly trolls leaders gathered at Cop26 with very appropriate ‘word of the day’

Susie Dent from Countdown has subtly trolled leaders at the Cop26 climate change conference with her word of the day.

The word? “Bloviation”, which Dent defines as meaning “empty rhetoric and a good deal of blah”.

Cambridge Dictionary’s definition is similar, reading: “To speak a lot in an annoying way as if you are very important.”

The term “blah” has been used a surprising amount when it comes to discussions around the climate in the run up to Cop26.

During the opening of the summit on Monday, prime minister Boris Johnson said if leaders don’t act urgently, the conference will be — as activist Greta Thunberg puts it — “blah, blah, blah”.

He didn’t cite Thunberg directly after using the turn of phrase, but she previously used the remark to make a jab at the inaction of world leaders when it comes to climate change.

Speaking at a youth climate conference in Italy in September, the 18-year-old environmental activist said: “Build back better. Blah, blah, blah. Green economy. Blah blah blah. Net zero by 2050. Blah, blah, blah.

“This is all we hear from our so-called leaders. Words that sound great but so far have not led to action.”

She remarked that we have had “30 years of blah, blah, blah”, and she posed the question “where has that led us?”

The Swedish activist again used the phrase yesterday as she slammed politicians for “pretending to take our future seriously”.

Speaking at a rally in Glasgow Festival Park, she said that Cop26 is just like the previous summits so far, which have “led us nowhere”.

She said: “We say no more blah blah blah, no more exploitation of people and nature and the planet.

“No more exploitation, no more blah blah blah. No more whatever the f*** they’re doing inside there.

“We are sick and tired of it and we’re going to make the change, whether they like it or not.”

She later sang, in a Scottish accent, that “you can shove your climate crisis up your a***.”

The conference is one of the most important climate events since the 2015 Paris Agreement as world leaders come together to discuss how to tackle the climate emergency.

The key goals of COP26 are to secure global net zero by 2050, keep 1.5 degrees within reach, adapt to protect communities and natural habitats, mobilise finance, and work together to deliver on climate promises.

To deliver on 2030 emissions reductions targets that align with the 2050 net zero goal, countries will need to come forward with plans that will involve phasing out coal, curtailing deforestation, speed up the switch to electric vehicles, and encourage investment in renewables.

So far, more than 100 leaders representing countries that are home to 85 per cent of the planet’s forests committed to “haul and reverse” deforestation by the end of the decade. 

To catch up on the highlights of Cop26, check out indy100’s list of everything that’s happened so far.