The Chancellor has been at pains as we head towards the Budget to paint what is an extremely gloomy picture of the economic situation that Labour has inherited from the previous Conservative government. Looking at this tangibly, the Treasury’s recent audit of the books unearthed a £22bn 'black hole' in the public finances.
Consequently, its widely expected that a range of taxes will be raised at the Budget, alongside tough decisions on investment in public services.
In terms of tax rises, commentators predict that both inheritance and capital gains tax could be targeted, whilst plans to limit public spending increases to 1% are likely to result in deep cuts for many Whitehall departments.
Does this mean spending directed at tackling climate change and the biodiversity crises is likely to be cut? Well, we sincerely hope not. For two reasons.
Meeting our net zero goals and long-term environmental targets, to enable future generations to prosper, inescapably requires sustained investment in cleaner industries, technologies and ways of working. This is the first and let's be frank, obvious and well accepted reason.
The second reason, which despite the growing body of evidence, seems to be the one that it is harder to convince those in control of the purse strings of is that investing sustainably is actually good for economic growth and productivity.
Indeed, research undertaken by LSE earlier in 2024 found that investing 1% of GDP in the low-carbon economy would attract double that from the private sector, boosting productivity and increasing economic growth, whilst at the same time cleaning up the economy.
Hence, in IEMA’s submission to the consultation on the Budget we prioritised the need for the investment in green jobs and skills that can help bring about this all to fruition.
Specifically calling for government, with support from business, to:
- Ensure the delivery of a green jobs plan that sets out how investment in green jobs and skills will be channelled across different economic sectors so that we have a workforce that can deliver the green economy of the future.
- Build on the work of the Green Jobs Delivery Group and establish a permanent cross-government body that takes a strategic approach to delivering green skills and jobs growth in the economy that is tied to our long-term climate and environmental goals.
We also acknowledge in our submission the steps that government could take with respect to developing a strategy for investing in and developing the circular economy of the future, which if done right could both save the UK money and deliver multiple environmental benefits.
In this area we are calling for government, with support from business, to:
- Establish a resource productivity target that is underpinned by the principles of green growth to enable the transition to a low-carbon circular economy, the availability of sustainable materials, and increasing resource efficiency and the wellbeing of the population.
- Develop a national circular strategy to ensure materials and products needed for our transition to a net-zero economy are reused, remanufactured and recycled.
Our full submission can be found here.
We will also be providing reaction the Budget shortly after it has taken place, with a reactionary webinar featuring the Resolution Foundation and Green Alliance also taking place shortly after on 4th November. Details will be available on iema.net in due course.
