IPPR has welcomed the prime minister’s expected announcement of a
new target to cut UK greenhouse gas emissions by at least 68 per
cent by 2030 as an “important signal”. But it has urged the
government to go further – and also deliver the practical steps
needed to achieve it.
Welcoming what the government calls a “world-leading”
emissions target, the progressive think tank called today for an
accompanying “world-beating plan” that would be needed to deliver
it.
That should include a significant increase in annual public
investment in measures to reduce emissions and restore nature.
IPPR has previously calculated that at least £30 billion a year
additional investment is needed for this.
Responding to the announcement of the new 2030
target, Luke Murphy, head of IPPR’s cross-party Environmental
Justice Commission said:
"This new emissions target is a welcome and significant
increase in ambition by the UK government, ahead of the crucial
UN Summit. As host of COP 26, it sends an important signal to
other countries around the world that are currently considering
their own commitments.
"This must, however, be the floor of the UK's ambition
and not the ceiling. As the world's fifth largest historic
emitter, the UK has a moral responsibility to go faster and
further than less developed nations. Moreover, this new target
excludes international aviation and shipping and it is important
that the government also makes a commitment to reduce emissions
in these sectors.
"What is more, ambitions are nothing without the
actions needed to realise them. While the Prime Minister's recent
10-point plan marked welcome progress, the commitments it
contained weren't even enough to meet our existing legally
binding targets, let alone get us on track to meet net
zero.
"If the government is serious about meeting its
commitment to what it calls a world-leading emissions target,
then it will need to back it up with a world-beating plan to
deliver it. That will mean bringing forward greater investment,
regulations and policies in areas from home retrofit to
tree-planting and clean public transport.
"It must also mean a commitment to reducing the
production, consumption and export of oil and gas, in line with
the UK's international commitments under the Paris
Agreement."
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. Earlier this month IPPR published its landmark
paper, The Road to COP26 by Luke Murphy and Carsten
Jung, available for download at https://www.ippr.org/research/publications/road-to-cop26
The paper called on the government
to:
-
Set a nationally determined contribution (NDC)
reduction target for carbon emissions of 'at least 69 per
cent' by 2030.
-
Take action to recognise the UK's historic contribution
to the climate crisis by increasing its domestic ambition
above this figure, or by committing £20 billion to the Green
Climate Fund up to 2030, as a means to realise the
non-domestic emissions reduction target and support less
industrialised nations to adapt to the changing climate on
their own terms.
-
Close the near £30 billion annual investment gap needed
to reach net zero by investing in home retrofit, sustainable
transport and nature restoration.
2. Only yesterday IPPR released
Net Zero
North Sea: a managed transition for Oil and Gas in the UK and
Scotland after Covid-19, by Josh Emden, Luke Murphy and
Russell Gunson, available for download at https://www.ippr.org/files/2020-12/net-zero-north-sea-nov2020.pdf.
In it, the think tank called for the UK and Scottish governments
to commit to a managed transition for oil and gas in Scotland and
the UK by delivering a ‘Net Zero Deal' for the North Sea.
3. That report was published as a submission to IPPR’s
cross-party Environmental Justice
Commission.
The Commission was set up in 2019 to present an ambitious,
positive vision shaped around people’s experiences and needs, and
develop a plan of action that integrates policy to address the
climate and environmental emergencies while also delivering
economic and social justice.
It is chaired by Laura Sandys, and MP. They are joined on the commission by leading figures
from business, academia, civil society, trade unions, and youth
and climate activism. Find out more about the commission
here: https://www.ippr.org/environment-and-justice
