U.K.’s Net-Zero Carbon Target Impossible Without New Policies
Britain’s ambitious plan to reach net-zero emissions by mid-century will be impossible to achieve unless the government implements a raft of low-carbon policies now, a committee of lawmakers have said.
While the ruling Conservative Party has pledged to slash emissions and even enshrined the goal in law, there is a lack of policy detail across the heat, transport and renewable energy industries that will be crucial to hitting the target, the Science and Technology Committee said in a report published Thursday.
The report follows warnings from the government’s own climate advisers that the nation has fallen far behind on its promises to fight climate change and cut emissions dramatically. In the past year, the government has delivered one of the 25 policies needed to meet emissions targets, the Committee on Climate Change has said.
“Throughout our inquiry, it was worrying to hear that although the government may be ambitious when it comes to reducing carbon emissions, it is not putting the policies in place which are needed to achieve those targets,” said Norman Lamb, a Liberal Democrat lawmaker who chairs the cross-party group. “We need to see the Government put its words into actions.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government needs to back onshore wind and large-scale solar, the committee said. Those technologies have been excluded from the U.K. market for several years.
Key recommendations
- Clear strategy to decarbonize heat
- Incentives for energy efficiency improvements in homes
- Bring forward date of ban on combustion vehicles to 2035
- Policy support for onshore wind and solar power
- Clarity on new nuclear financing models
- Action on carbon capture and storage
Source: bloombergquint
