Conservative ministers failed to act to meet UK climate targets, government advisors warned today.

The Climate Change Committee (CCC) said just a third of the necessary emissions cuts had credible plans. It said:

“the previous Government signalled a slowing of pace and reversed or delayed key policies. The new Government will have to act fast to hit the country’s commitments.”

The CCC made 10 recommendations in its 2024 progress report to the UK parliament.

These include making electricity cheaper and reversing Conservative policy delays for the phase out of fossil fuel vehicles and boilers.

The report said:

“These decisions have left substantial gaps in the policy and commercial delivery landscape.”

The government had “failed to set out what it would do to fill these gaps”, the CCC said.

The UK has committed to reduce emissions in 2030 by 68% compared to 1990 levels. This is part of its Nationally Determined Contribution to the Paris Agreement.

The CCC said the UK was not on track to meet this target, the first in line with plans to reach net zero by 2050. This is despite a reduction in 2023 emissions and previous cuts which mean emissions are now less than half their 1990 level.

So far, most of the progress has been from phasing out coal-generated electricity. The CCC said the UK now needed to “rapidly reduce oil and gas use as well”.

Conservative ministers delayed the phase-out of new oil boilers from 2026 to 2035 and exempted 20% of households from the 2035 phase out of new gas boilers. They also delayed the ban on new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035.

The CCC said:

“policy reversals and delays in other areas, together with inconsistent messaging, have hindered progress just when acceleration was needed.”

A parliamentary bill, published in 2023, to require annual oil and gas licensing rounds, did not become law before the election. But the CCC said:

“New licensing signals a maintained reliance on fossil fuel production, rather than focusing on the decarbonisation transition required by offshore platforms and towards renewable energy production”.

The new Labour administration set out plans during the general election campaign to ban new oil and gas exploration.  But it will need to decide whether to cancel the ongoing licensing round, which could leave the new government open to legal action.

Professor Piers Forster, interim CCC chair, said the 2030 emissions reduction target was “at risk”. 

“The new Government has an opportunity to course-correct, but it will need to be done as a matter of urgency to make up for lost time. They are off to a good start. Action needs to extend beyond electricity, with rapid progress needed on electric cars, heat pumps and tree planting.

“The transition to Net Zero can deliver investment, lower bills, and energy security. It will help the UK keep its place on the world stage. It is a way for this Government to serve both the people of today and the people of tomorrow.”

The CCC said it hoped the new government would use the COP29 climate conference in November 2024 to re-establish UK leadership on the global climate stage.

The report said ambitious future plans were needed to:

• Treble annual offshore wind installations and doubling onshore wind
• Increase solar installations by five times
• Ramp up rates of tree planting and peatland restoration
• Increase the proportion of existing homes heated by heat pumps from about 1% today to about 10%.
• Accelerate electrification of industrial heat
• Increase the market share of new electric cars from 16.5% in 2023 to nearly 100%

Danny Gross, climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said:

“This report is a damning indictment of the climate policies the new Labour administration has inherited from the previous government.

 “While the new government has made a positive start on climate action by setting out plans for decarbonising electricity, including lifting the ban on onshore wind, and withdrawing its legal defence of plans for a new coal mine in Cumbria, it urgently needs to ramp up ambition on cutting emissions from homes and buildings, transport and agriculture.

 “Every government department will need to swing behind policies for a fair, green transition to a zero-carbon economy if it’s to meet its manifesto pledge to achieve the UK’s commitment to reduce emissions by over two thirds by 2030.

 “The government must publish a new climate plan by May next year – following our landmark court win against the Conservatives’ unlawful strategy. So, the race is on to develop a bold package of policies that put the UK’s climate goals back on track, reduce inequality, bring down bills and emissions, and create the green jobs and industries needed for a fossil free future.”

Labour energy plans

Labour set out its energy plans in the King’s Speech yesterday.

It announced a bill to set up Great British Energy, a publicly-owned clean power company, that would “accelerate investment in renewable energy”.

The company, to be based in Scotland, would be backed by £8.6bn of public money over the length of this parliament. Significant private sector investment would be needed to fund a decarbonised power system.

It would not supply power to homes. Instead, it is designed to help fund existing an new clean technologies and work with local communities to develop small and medium-sized renewable projects.

The government also said it would introduce legislation to “help the country achieve energy independence and unlock investment in energy infrastructure”.

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