• New Friends of the Earth report highlights the impact of the act, with new analysis showing a 41% fall in UK emissions since it was introduced – report and summary here.
• But UK climate policy is at a precipice with targets spiralling off track and an urgent need for a lawful, fair and ambitious new climate plan.
• Former climate tsar Lord Deben warns that if the government’s next climate plan fails to get the UK on track to hit its climate targets, the negative implications will be severe.
The new Labour government must take bold and decisive action to meet the UK’s climate targets, Friends of the Earth said today in a new report [1] to mark the 16th anniversary of the historic Climate Change Act [2].
Following the Prime Minister’s efforts at the UN climate summit earlier this month to restore the UK’s reputation on climate leadership, the environmental justice group is calling for the new climate plan - that the government is legally required to draw up in the next few months - to make clear how existing and future climate commitments will be met, including the 81% cut in UK emissions by 2035 that Keir Starmer committed to at the summit.
In its report – Climate at a Crossroads – published today, Friends of the Earth highlights both the transformative impact the Climate Change Act has had on cutting emissions, boosting UK climate leadership and improving people’s lives, and the urgent action needed now to protect its legacy:
• The act made the UK the first in the world to set legally binding climate targets. Analysis of global climate laws reveals that since the act, 33 countries have enshrined an emissions reduction target in law.
• New analysis of government data reveals that UK emissions dropped by 41% in the 15 years since the act, compared with only 16% in the 15 years before the law was passed – although progress stalled under the Sunak administration [3].
• However, action to cut emissions hasn’t been consistent across different sectors. Since 2008, electricity emissions have fallen by 74%, but agriculture and transport emissions have decreased by only 4% and 16% respectively. Worryingly, the government set out policies in the Budget that will make matters worse in the troubled transport sector – increasing the bus fare cap from £2 to £3 and freezing fuel duty.
• Labour is yet to deliver on many of the 10 ‘urgent’ priority recommendations [4] that the Climate Change Committee has advised need to be in place by the end of the year, warning: “without them, we are concerned that time will run out to make up lost ground by 2030”. Friends of the Earth’s report found that after four months, the government has made noises on some of them but only has policies partially in place for three of them, and fully in place for only one of them.
Former Climate Change Committee chair, Lord Deben, wants action too, urging the government to introduce a clear plan for getting climate targets back on track, warning: “If it fails to do so the negative implications for the international climate regime and for business confidence will be severe.”
The report warns that the Climate Change Act’s legacy and achievements are under threat due to setbacks under the last Conservative government. As a result, the new Labour administration has inherited:
• Key climate targets spiralling dangerously off-track [3];
• A climate action plan deemed ‘unlawful’ by the High Court earlier this year, following legal challenges by Friends of the Earth and others [5].
Furthermore, the climate consensus ushered in by the act has started to unravel. It was the Conservative government that updated the act to set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to ‘net zero’ by 2050 compared to 1990 levels, but the party’s new leader Kemi Badenoch has described herself as a “‘net zero sceptic” [6].
Friends of the Earth is calling on Ed Miliband, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, who piloted the act through parliament 16 years ago, to restore government credibility on this important issue by setting out a raft of policies in an ambitious new climate plan, that enhances the quality of people’s lives and ensures that UK climate targets are actually met.
Friends of the Earth campaigner, Danny Gross, said:
“The Climate Change Act is a ground-breaking piece of legislation that has enabled the UK to slash its planet-wrecking emissions by more than 40% since its introduction 16 years ago.
“But following heavy setbacks under Rishi Sunak’s premiership, Trump’s election victory and an escalating climate crisis we urgently need the UK government to show real leadership.
“Keir Starmer’s pledge to cut UK emissions by 81% by 2035 was a welcome move towards rebuilding this country’s tarnished reputation – now we need an ambitious climate action plan to ensure this target is met in a way that ensure everyone benefits from a fair transition to a zero-carbon economy. This will also boost energy security, lower bills and give businesses the confidence to invest in the green economy and create new jobs."
Lord Deben, former chair of the Climate Change Committee, said
"Politicians find long term challenges like climate change difficult because it's the short-term issues which often determine elections. The Climate Change Act is a unique example of government and parliament agreeing to set a pathway in law spanning multiple decades and putting in place a governance infrastructure to hold it to account. Its passing was a remarkable achievement.
“I've seen first-hand how the Climate Change Act has forced Ministers across departments to pay more attention to this existential issue than would otherwise be the case. Also, the continued scrutiny on performance against the act provided by the Climate Change Committee and civil society groups like Friends of the Earth has been and continues to be vital.
"However, we saw sub-standard climate plans produced by the last government. The plan which this new government must produce has to show clearly how we reach Net Zero by 2050 and put us back on-track to meeting legally binding commitments. If it fails to do so the negative implications for the international climate regime and for business confidence will be severe. However, I remain hopeful because its clearer than ever that economic and climate goals are aligned and this, together with the rigour of the legislation and governance that this Climate Change Act brings, means the UK can and should once again take up the mantle as a global leader. "
Fair and ambitious climate plan urgently required
Ed Miliband – who was Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when the act was passed – now has a golden opportunity to rescue and restore its legacy and deliver on his pledge to show leadership on the climate crisis.
Friends of the Earth’s Big Climate Plan campaign is calling on Mr Miliband to put fairness at the heart of a bold new climate plan by achieving these five goals:
• Keep the UK government's promises to cut carbon emissions by developing credible policies, created with experts and the public. This includes consulting a citizens’ panel to help shape the plan.
• Invest in our future by fairly financing local, devolved nation, UK and international climate action, in conjunction with businesses.
• Ensure everyone can live in a warm home powered by cheap, clean energy.
• Deliver affordable, reliable public transport and clean air for all.
• Help people find well-paid green jobs by providing investment and training, especially for sectors and places most at risk of being left behind.
ENDS
Notes:
1. The full report is here.
2. Friends of the Earth led the campaign for the Climate Change Act, which was passed in 2008. The law armed the UK with three new arrows to hit climate targets. Firstly, it enshrined climate targets in law, including a long-term commitment to reduce emissions by 80% by 2050, and carbon budgets that limit emissions along the way. The 2050 target was later upgraded by the Conservative government to net zero emissions. Secondly, it created the Climate Change Committee (CCC) to advise on the level of the carbon budgets and monitor the government’s progress. Thirdly, it compelled governments to publish a climate plan every five years.
3. A Friends of the Earth report published last year, estimated that under the previous government’s policies, UK greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 would only be around 59% lower than 1990 – leaving a gap of 9 percentage points with the target of 68%.
4. The CCC’s ten priority actions for the remainder of this year were contained its 2024 progress report to Parliament. Friends of the Earth’s assessment of government progress is here.
5. The climate action plan, published by the previous Rishi Sunak administration, was found to be unlawful earlier this year following legal challenges by Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth and Good Law Project. This was the second time in less than two years that the government’s carbon reduction polices were found to be unlawful. The High Court has ordered a revised plan to be drawn up by early May 2025.
6. The new Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has described herself as a “‘net zero sceptic”’ and has accused the target of hurting the economy.