Britain could bring forward plans to go carbon neutral by five years, despite warnings that it would push the £1trillion bill even higher.
Government officials are considering bringing forward the 2050 target for going ‘net zero’ to 2045 to encourage big polluting countries to take action more quickly.
It follows dismay at the failure of many of the world’s biggest carbon emitters to sign up to the 2050 target at the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow.
Britain could bring forward plans to go carbon neutral by five years, despite warnings that it would push the £1trillion bill even higher
It follows dismay at the failure of many of the world’s biggest carbon emitters to sign up to the 2050 target at the Cop26 climate summit in Glasgow (stock image)
UK emissions account for less than one percent of the global total, therefore moving to a deadline in 2045 will make very little difference to that number.
Senior figures think that the UK can shame other nations into more aggressive action by moving faster.
China, the planet’s biggest polluter, has said it will not go carbon neutral until 2060. Russia also has the same deadline.
India, the world’s third biggest carbon emitter, has said it will not achieve net zero until 2070. One British minister said India’s pledge was almost worthless, adding: ‘If you are saying 2070 you might as well say never.’
India (pictured is a busy road in Delhi), the world’s third biggest carbon emitter, has said it will not achieve net zero until 2070
Another downfall! Another letdown!
These eco-zealots are targeting SUVs but have the wrong vehicles.
The group Tyred of SUVs claimed responsibility for deflating car tyres in Glasgow’s West End.
However, the activists were not interested in SUVs because of their huge engines.
The group Tyred of SUVs claimed responsibility for deflating car tyres in Glasgow’s West End
Lucy Conn (31) was a solicitor and found her average 1.6-litre car’s tyres flat while driving her three-year old to nursery.
A leaflet on the bonnet read: ‘Your SUV contributes to the second biggest cause of carbon emissions rise in the last decade. This is why we have disarmed your car by deflating one or more of its tyres.’
She said her neighbour’s 1.2-litre engine car had also been hit. A Police Scotland spokesman said: ‘We are aware of these incidents and there will be increased patrols in the area.’
A senior UK official insisted that countries such as India were now agreeing to take more action to cut emissions by 2030 – and Britain could try to nudge foot-dragging nations into speedier action by bringing forward its own target.
The source added: ‘Six years ago in Paris, the discussion about accelerating things this decade wasn’t even on the agenda. Today, we see progress.
‘It may be that in the future we move to 2045 in the UK and that helps move India and others to take a more ambitious approach. It isn’t going to happen right now, but a couple of years down the line it is possible.’ Downing Street played down the idea, saying there were ‘no plans’ to bring forward the net zero date.
Conservative MPs are likely to be alarmed by this suggestion, who worry that 2050’s deadline could cause irreparable damage for businesses and families.
Former minister Steve Baker, of the Net Zero Watch group of Tory MPs, said the Government still did not have ‘a politically and economically viable plan for reaching net zero by 2050’.
He added: ‘The idea of moving up the deadline just because things aren’t moving fast enough elsewhere is an absurd recipe for failure.’
The Treasury refused to provide a number for the estimated cost of meeting current net zero targets.
But in documents released last month it said that the capital costs alone would average £60billion a year. The Treasury said the green push would drive prices up and would require ‘additional taxes’ if the Government was asked to fund the transition to a greener economy.
Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies think-tank, said the final bill would be ‘well over £1trillion’, spread over the next 30 years.
Baker claimed that the rising bill was expected if Britain moved more quickly.
It is also possible that some parts of the UK’s economy may become less competitive if it moves quicker than its foreign counterparts. This could lead to job losses and a reduction in global carbon emissions.
The shift to electric cars will help offset some of the cost of reaching net zero. However, much of this cost comes from reducing the need for gas boilers.
According to a Treasury analysis, heating bills may rise up by 50%.
A No10 source dismissed the idea of an earlier deadline, adding: ‘The UK was the first major economy to legislate for net zero by 2050 and we are focused on achieving that and meeting important interim targets.’
Cop26 talks on global warming stoppage go into the final stages, putting climate hopes at risk
Claire Ellicott and Colin Fernandez, Daily Mail
Yesterday, the Cop26 climate change negotiations were at the edge of collapse as global warming talks continued well into the night.
World leaders were warned the draft text left the goal of limiting rising temperatures to 1.5C in ‘mortal peril’ as negotiators battled over the final wording.
As countries clashed on fossil fuel policies, Glasgow Summit, originally scheduled for last night, was extended.
Boris Johnson said the goal of the UN conference was to ‘keep 1.5C alive’, but experts warned the current pledges would still let Earth warm up by 2.4C.
World leaders were warned the draft text left the goal of limiting rising temperatures to 1.5C in ‘mortal peril’ as negotiators battled over the final wording. Boris Johnson claimed that 1.5C was the ultimate goal.
The Prime Minister warned: ‘People need to understand that the deal that’s on the table… that is the text.
‘We either find a way of agreeing it or I’m afraid we risk blowing it. That’s the reality.’
He urged leaders to find the ‘courage’ to strike a deal, adding: ‘What we can’t do is stop global warming at Glasgow – we’ve got to accept that. What we can do is keep alive the prospect of restraining the increase in temperatures to 1.5 degrees by the end of the century.’
Scientists agree that it is vital to limit warming below 1.5C in order for climate change to be stopped.
A draft agreement published late last night did not make any progress towards achieving that goal. Progress was slowed by nations like the US, Australia, China and Saudi Arabia.
Although the draft talked of ending the world’s dependence on coal and fossil fuels for the first time, the language was watered down.
Countries were ‘requested’ to strengthen their 2030 targets by next year, when they are expected to meet in Egypt.
A pledge for richer nations to give the poorest £73billion a year to adapt to climate change also appears to have been diluted.
As countries clashed on fossil fuel policy, Glasgow Summit, originally scheduled for last night, was extended into extra time
Asked whether the draft met his hopes, climate expert Lord Stern said: ‘It falls short of what one would hope for in the sense of really driving to 1.5C and tackling clean development – but it goes beyond where I thought it might be a few days ago.’
The peer, who led the 2006 Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, added: ‘This new text is stronger, has a greater sense of urgency.’
Dr Thomas Hale, associate professor in Public Policy at Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government, said: ‘We have seen some progress. But we need to see much more next year.’
As the talks continued, it became a matter of life and death for the aid that was being offered to vulnerable countries like island states in order to rebuild their economies after the impacts of climate change.