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Will the UK meet net zero targets by 2050?
The UN Climate Summit COP26 will be held in Glasgow in November later this year.
This will be the largest climate meeting since the Paris agreement back in 2015.
With the UK hosting this landmark climate event, they have also pledged that 2020 will be a year for change in climate action.
Ahead of the conference, Green Alliance has released a policy tracker for measuring carbon reduction. The tracker will help monitor the governments action, which is currently off track in achieving their own targets in 2050.
It has been noted that the UK has made great efforts in cutting carbon in the energy sector. Despite this, other areas such as transport, housing, land use and industry, have been neglected. As a result of the tracker, its been found that the government are under-spending on climate and nature emergencies by £25.25 billion per year. It is estimated that a spend of £42 billion a year is needed for the next three years to keep on target.
Further to these findings, Green Alliance have made five suggestions to keep the UK on track:
- Plant over 27,000 trees per year, manage soil better and restore wetlands/peatlands
- Provide £1 billion per year as additional funding for a home energy efficiency programme
- Bring the ban on petrol and diesel cars forward to 2030
- Open up new routes to market for onshore wind and solar
- Introduce new incentives for better product design and reuse
All five policies are able to be implemented straight away and should be a starting point for the government to develop on.
The tracker is available online at www.netzeropolicytracker.co.uk and will be regularly updated.
Source: Green Alliance
