In a move to enhance transparency over its Net Zero plans, the UK government has published the Carbon Budget Delivery Plan (CBDP) following a High Court ruling last year.
Despite the inclusion of over 3,000 pages of detailed information, the latest assessment by independent statutory body the Climate Change Committee (CCC) finds the UK in a worse position to meet its 2030 sustainability goals than a year ago.
To date, the UK has successfully reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 46% compared to 1990 levels.
At COP26, an ambitious commitment was made to further reduce emissions by 68% by 2030.
This implies that the current pace of annual emissions reduction outside the electricity supply sector must quadruple within just seven years.
However, time is running short to achieve this accelerated change.
While there are some indications of progress in the transition to Net Zero, such as increased sales of electric cars and continued deployment of renewable capacity, the overall scaling up of actions remains alarmingly slow.
The government's continued reliance on untested technological solutions, rather than encouraging people to reduce high-carbon activities, has raised concerns.
The CCC has also emphasises the risks associated with delayed tree planting and the rollout of heat pumps.
Lord Deben, Chairman of the Climate Change Committee, says, "The lesson of my ten years at the Climate Change Committee is that early action benefits the people of this country and helps us to meet the challenges of the coming decades more cheaply and more easily.
Yet, even in these times of extraordinary fossil fuel prices, the government has been too slow to embrace cleaner, cheaper alternatives and too keen to support new production of coal, oil, and gas.
There is a worrying hesitancy by Ministers to lead the country to the next stage of Net Zero commitments.
I urge the Government to regroup on Net Zero and commit to bolder delivery.
This is a period when pace must be prioritised over perfection."
The CCC also highlights the failure of key government departments to deliver on the recommendations made by the Committee last year.
While the establishment of the new Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is a positive step, little progress has been made in implementing seven priority recommendations made to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) in the previous progress report.
Additionally, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) have failed to achieve any of the priority recommendations outlined by the Committee in 2022.
The UK's stance on climate priorities has sent conflicting signals to the global community.
The lesson of my ten years at the Climate Change Committee is that early action benefits the people of this country and helps us to meet the challenges of the coming decades more cheaply and more easily. Yet, even in these times of extraordinary fossil fuel prices, the government has been too slow to embrace cleaner, cheaper alternatives
Support for new oil and gas projects, beyond the immediate increase in gas production due to the Ukraine invasion, along with the approval of a new coal mine in Cumbria, have attracted global attention and undermined the carefully negotiated language of the UK COP26 Presidency in the Glasgow Climate Pact.
Insufficient support for decarbonised industry in the face of global competition is another concern, as the government lacks a clear policy to achieve its ambitions for decarbonised steel production and wider incentives for industrial electrification are still required.
Rapid reform to planning processes is necessary to facilitate the deployment of essential upgrades to the electricity grid and other Net Zero infrastructure.
Restrictive planning rules have been identified as a hindrance in several areas.
The CCC suggests that the planning system should prioritise Net Zero considerations in decision-making.
Changes in land use require time, and while some reforms have been made through the new Environmental Land Management policy, Defra needs to accelerate rates of tree planting and peatland restoration and introduce a new framework for land use change.
The government's decision to delay strategic decision-making on the role of hydrogen in heating until 2026 creates uncertainty.
To address this, the CCC urges the government to expedite the deployment of electric heating and proceed with low-regret energy infrastructure decisions.
With regards to the progress indicators, the CCC's new framework reveals areas where progress is off-track:
Opportunities to deploy onshore wind and solar more rapidly have been missed, impeding the growth of clean energy supply and reducing dependence on imported fossil gas.-item wp:list-item
Moreover, energy efficiency measures have seen a further decline in installation rates in 2022.-item wp:list-item
This change is expected to incentivize the adoption of electrified technologies among consumers and should be made a permanent adjustment.-item wp:list-item
While peatland restoration rates have slightly increased in 2022, they remain far below the CCC's recommended rates.-item wp:list-item
However, data on meat availability presents a less clear picture, suggesting the need for further policy intervention to promote healthier low-carbon diets.-item wp:list-item
The lack of comprehensive data hinders accurate measurement of progress, but available indicators suggest that the industry is off track.
The CCC highlights the absence of a clear plan to support industrial electrification and a lack of evidence that the industry is preparing for large-scale electrification.-item
The CCC also emphasises the urgency of taking immediate action to address these challenges, calling on the government to recommit to prioritising 'pace over perfection' in its pursuit of Net Zero.
