Government today responded to the CCC’s first annual progress report to Parliament, and committed to redouble its efforts to reduce emissions from harmful greenhouse gases in order to meet Carbon Budgets and help to tackle global warming. In launching the Government’s response, the Secretary of State for the Department of Energy and Climate Change Ed Miliband said:
“The recession will not deflect the Government’s efforts to cut emissions and move to a low carbon economy. We will not let up on the fight against climate change, instead we must redouble our efforts at home and internationally so the UK emerges from the global downturn building on the opportunities and benefits a low carbon future will bring”.
The response accepts the recommendations of the CCC report, acknowledging the need for a step change going beyond any emissions reductions resulting from the recession, and setting out new initiatives for policy strengthening in key areas including a review of the electricity market arrangements. It also broadly accepts the Committee’s framework of indicators against which future progress reducing emissions will be assessed. Lord Turner, Chair of the Committee on Climate Change, responded to the report on behalf of the Committee saying:
“We welcome this positive response to our first report to Parliament. It starts to address issues that we raised, and moves us closer to a framework that will drive required emissions cuts. We look forward to departmental action plans and the 2050 vision to be published by the Government in Spring, and will provide an updated assessment of progress meeting carbon budgets in our June report to Parliament.”
Topics