Read the Initial Assessment published by the NCP 24 November 2020: English
Read the Final Statement published by the NCP 15 December 2021: English
On 30 January 2020, Friends of the Earth, an NGO, and three individuals (Egan, Dodds and Simons) submitted a specific instance to the Australian NCP concerning the ANZ Banking Group. The submitters allege that ANZ’s lack of full disclosure about its climate change impacts prevent consumers from making informed decisions whether or not to engage with the bank.
The submitters request ANZ to:
• Disclose greenhouse gas emissions, including indirect emissions
• Divest interests in coal and other fossil fuel industries
• Commit to greenhouse gas emission targets in line with the Paris Agreement
• Conduct and disclose comprehensive climate-related scenario analysis for all financed sectors
On 24 November 2020, the NCP published an initial assessment deciding to accept the case for further consideration. The statement noted that some of the issues raised, notably regarding divestment from fossil fuels, were outside the scope of the Guidelines. The AusNCP therefore moved to offer good offices focusing on the issues of disclosure, target-setting and scenario analysis.
As the parties were unable to reach an agreement, on 15 December 2021, the NCP published its final statement. The NCP concluded that ANZ had acted consistently with the Guidelines. Furthermore, the NCP noted that the case illustrated the ambiguity of the Guidelines’ expectations regarding climate change. The NCP recommended that the statement be brought to the attention of the OECD, its advisory bodies and OECD Watch.
The NCP acknowledged delays in the handling of this specific instance, which were due to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic.