The UK’s groundbreaking Climate Change Act is now 10 years old. This piece of legislation was a global first in setting up a legally-binding 2050 climate target — broken down into five-year emissions budgets to allow for political accountability and responsiveness to new science. It also established an independent statutory advisory body: the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), to bring climate science directly to policymakers and hold government to account for those budgets.
While the Act remains an excellent framework, its target is in need of an update — especially in light of the IPCC 1.5oC Special Report.
ECO is delighted to note that the UK Minister has taken the first step towards increasing the UK’s long term ambition – and potentially the nearer-term carbon budgets. She has formally asked the CCC to give advice on how the UK can get to net-zero, and by when ECO hopes that this will be by 2045 – which a recent report showed was possible; we await the CCC’s analysis, due by in March/April 2019. This means the UK will be in a good position to enhance its NDC by 2020, perhaps even in line with 1.5oC – as all countries should aim to do.
