Why we need a clean growth plan...now

29th September 2017


P27 chimney shutterstock

Related Topics

Related tags

  • Politics & Economics

Author

Stephanie McGibbon

Paul McNamee investigates the repercussions of the UK’s failure to come up with a policy to meet the fourth, let alone the fifth, carbon budget

While the UK government has set ambitious targets and taken a prominent role in international climate leadership, by ratifying the Paris Agreement and announcing the phase out of coal-fired power, at home there has been a notable lack of policy to match these aspirations.

Most significant is the absence of policy outlining how we will meet the fifth carbon budget (setting targets for 2028-32), which was set more than a year ago. In fact, a report earlier this year from the government’s own Committee on Climate Change says we won’t even meet the fourth carbon budget for 2023-27.

This doesn’t just affect the nation’s ability to reduce its emissions – it is also creating uncertainty for business and investors. At a time when the UK is establishing itself as a world leader in the low-carbon industry, this is worrying. Certainty is needed for such sectors, which are creating jobs in areas that have traditionally suffered from high unemployment, as well as growing expertise and services that can be exported worldwide.

The clean growth plan, overdue by more than a year, will be responsible for addressing the effects already being felt by certain industries as a result of this lack of clarity.

Green Alliance’s recent report, published with CAFOD, Christian Aid, Greenpeace, RSPB and WWF, highlighted that, without intervention, investment in renewables is projected to drop 95% by 2021. Energy saved by government housing efficiency schemes dropped by almost 90% in 2012-13, with no improvement since then.

And while we might think we’re doing quite well in the electric vehicle market, these made up only 1.4% of UK new vehicle sales in 2016, with 181 charging points per million people, whereas electric vehicles represent 29% of all new sales in Norway, which has 1,571 charging points per million people.

Easy wins

The government clean growth plan needs to be ambitious enough to address these issues and set a strong framework. Some initial ‘easy wins’ will be to follow through on its previous investment in renewables and continue support with an additional £1.7 billion between 2020 and 2025. Renewable energy sources are now cheaper than fossil fuels and the Treasury should give manufacturers in the renewable industry the certainty to invest in supply chains for the long term.

Another aim should be to reintroduce a standard for zero-carbon homes by 2020 and improve the energy efficiency of existing stock to EPC C by 2035.

As far as electric vehicles go, the government could go further. To be world leaders in this area, the UK’s 2040 target should be brought forward a decade to 2030 and should sit alongside vehicle efficiency targets. A plan for charging infrastructure is needed to give investors and consumers confidence.

If after over a year of waiting, the clean growth plan doesn’t start to address these issues with an ambitious framework, strong policies, and immediate action on energy, housing and transport, it will be a disappointment. The plan needs to be more than just words; government needs to start setting out its actions.

Paul McNamee joined Green Alliance in June 2016 as the head of politics, leading Green Alliance’s Political Leadership theme. He manages the Climate Leadership Programme for MPs and joint advocacy work with the major green NGOs.

Subscribe

Subscribe to IEMA's newsletters to receive timely articles, expert opinions, event announcements, and much more, directly in your inbox.


Transform articles

Facing the climate emergency challenge in local government

It’s well recognised that the public sector has the opportunity to work towards a national net-zero landscape that goes well beyond improving on its own performance; it can also influence through procurement and can direct through policy.

19th March 2024

Read more

The UK government’s carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) strategy is based on optimistic techno-economic assumptions that are now outdated, Carbon Tracker has warned.

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK government’s climate adaptation plans are ‘inadequate’ and falling ‘far short’ of what is required, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) has warned today.

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK’s net-zero economy grew 9% last year while delivering higher paid jobs than average and attracting billions of pounds in private investment, analysis by CBI Economics has uncovered.

28th February 2024

Read more

A consortium including IEMA and the Good Homes Alliance have drafted a letter to UK government ministers expressing disappointment with the proposed Future Homes Standard.

26th February 2024

Read more

Campaign group Wild Justice has accused the UK government of trying to relax pollution rules for housebuilders “through the backdoor”.

14th February 2024

Read more

Three-quarters of UK adults are concerned about the impact that climate change will have on their bills, according to polling commissioned by Positive Money.

13th February 2024

Read more

All major housing developments in England will be required by law to deliver at least a 10% increase in biodiversity under new rules that came into force today.

12th February 2024

Read more

Media enquires

Looking for an expert to speak at an event or comment on an item in the news?

Find an expert

IEMA Cookie Notice

Clicking the ‘Accept all’ button means you are accepting analytics and third-party cookies. Our website uses necessary cookies which are required in order to make our website work. In addition to these, we use analytics and third-party cookies to optimise site functionality and give you the best possible experience. To control which cookies are set, click ‘Settings’. To learn more about cookies, how we use them on our website and how to change your cookie settings please view our cookie policy.

Manage cookie settings

Our use of cookies

You can learn more detailed information in our cookie policy.

Some cookies are essential, but non-essential cookies help us to improve the experience on our site by providing insights into how the site is being used. To maintain privacy management, this relies on cookie identifiers. Resetting or deleting your browser cookies will reset these preferences.

Essential cookies

These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website.

Analytics cookies

These cookies allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors to our website and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works.

Advertising cookies

These cookies allow us to tailor advertising to you based on your interests. If you do not accept these cookies, you will still see adverts, but these will be more generic.

Save and close