Senior government climate change advisers have warned Boris Johnson against more foreign aid cuts ahead of the COP26 summit, the BBC has learned.

The experts said the cuts would show the UK was "neither committed to nor serious about" helping countries vulnerable to climate change.

The Treasury said the UK was a "world leader" in international development.

The panel - known officially as the Friends of COP - was appointed by Alok Sharma, the Cop president, to advise the government ahead of next month's summit in Glasgow - and includes some of the most experienced climate experts in the world.

It went on: "The ability of the UK to act as a genuine, trusted partner for developing countries is of crucial importance to COP26's success.

Further implied cuts to overseas aid at the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) would send a signal that the UK is neither committed to, nor serious about, enabling a green global recovery from the pandemic, nor improving the resilience of the most vulnerable to climate change.".

The fear among climate campaigners is that developing countries will lose trust in the financial promises made by the UK - and other richer nations - to help them adapt their economies to climate change.

"If the Treasury slashes budgetary commitments to climate finance days before COP26 starts, developing countries - which have typically contributed fewer per capita emissions - will rightly question why they should bear the costs of climate action and whether they can trust the pledges of developed countries.".

"This year we provided over £10bn towards poverty reduction, climate change and global health security - a greater proportion of our national income than the majority of the G7," he said, adding "we will return to the 0.7% target when the fiscal situation allows"?

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