Govt to publish new climate action plan in October

A new government action plan for meeting the UK’s legally binding climate targets over the next 12 years must be published by Wednesday 29 October 2025, following a High Court decision to give the government more time to write it [1].  

Last year the High Court ruled that the existing climate plan – The Carbon Budget Delivery Plan – introduced in 2023 by the previous government, was unlawful [2] following successful legal challenges by Friends of the Earth and Client Earth. The court ordered that a revised set of policies be published.  

Friends of the Earth is urging the government to seize the huge opportunities that building a greener future will bring by ensuring that everyone feels the benefits, such as lower bills, warmer homes and better public transport, as well as making sure that UK climate targets are met.  

Last year the net zero economy grew over 10%, generating a whopping £83bn, while other sectors lagged behind [3].

A YouGov poll published in March [4] this year found that 61% of adults supported the government’s commitment to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050, including 52% of Conservative voters.  

Earlier this month Friends of the Earth published a new report, The Fairness Test [5], spelling out the steps that must be taken across transport, homes and industry to ensure that meeting climate goals reduces, rather than exacerbates, inequalities.  

A YouGov poll for Friends of the Earth, which accompanied the report, found that nearly two thirds (65%) of people support those on the lowest incomes receiving government grants to help pay for climate measures [6].  

Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at Friends of the Earth, said:  

“Action on climate change isn’t just good for the planet, it’s a win for our economy and public health too. It’s also vital if we’re to safeguard the future for young people and generations to come. With recent polling showing that 65% of people are worried about the impacts of climate breakdown on future generations, including the majority of those who voted Labour, Liberal Democrat or Conservative at the general election, it’s clear that delivering on our climate goals remains a top priority for voters across political divides.

“Crucially however, the climate plan due later this year must both meet climate targets and improve people’s quality of life – we know that public support depends on it. That’s why the plan must be designed in a way that’s bold, transformative and fair. As well as preventing runaway climate breakdown and huge economic costs being stored up for the future, this will ensure everyone benefits from the transition to a low carbon future.”

The High Court originally instructed the government to publish a revised climate plan by the beginning of May this year but agreed to an extension following consultation with Friends of the Earth and ClientEarth, the two organisations that successfully judicial reviewed the Carbon Budget Delivery Plan.  

The new climate action plan will set out the policies for enabling Carbon Budgets 4-6 to be met – covering the period up until 2037. Under the previous weak and unlawful plan, progress towards achieving Carbon Budget 6 (2033-2037) drifted seriously off track.  

Earlier this year the Climate Change Committee announced its recommendation for Carbon Budget 7 (2038-2042), but this has yet to be agreed by the government and will not be covered by October’s climate action plan.

ENDS  

For more information and interview requests, please contact the Friends of the Earth press office on 020 7566 1649 or email [email protected].

Notes to editors:

1. The High Court sent its decision on the timing for the new climate plan to the government and to Friends of the Earth and ClientEarth. The new date means that by the 29 October 2025, the government needs to lay before parliament a plan that is compliant with the Climate Change Act.  
2. Following the legal challenges to the Carbon Budget Delivery Plan brought by Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth and Good Law Project (those brought by Friends of the Earth and ClientEarth succeeded), the High Court had originally ordered the government to produce a revised plan by 2 May 2025. Landmark High Court judgment finds government's climate plan 'unlawful' - again' | Friends of the Earth, May 2024.  
3. UK net zero economy grows 10% in a year, finds new report | ECIU, February 2025
4. To what extent do you support or oppose the government’s commitment to cutting carbon emissions to net zero by 2050? | YouGov, March 2025
5. Protection for low income households key to net zero support | Friends of the Earth, March 2025. Friends of the Earth’s 10-point fairness checklist, as set out in our Fairness Report, calls on the UK government and its forthcoming climate plan to:

• Exceed climate targets - Overachieve on all carbon reduction targets to minimise the impact of climate change on young people and future generations.
• Consult impacted communities - Be developed in consultation with people most directly impacted by climate change and/or policies to cut emissions through, for example, a citizen’s jury or climate assembly.  
• Reduce inequality - Use a detailed Equality Impact Assessment to show that people experiencing poverty and inequality will be better off as a result of the climate plan.
• Ensure polluters and the wealthy pay - Fund emissions cuts and overseas climate support primarily through taxes on polluters and the wealthy, not by increasing taxes on people with the lowest incomes.
• Guarantee warm homes - Insulate all low-income households to at least EPC ‘C’ level by 2035 at the latest and eradicate fuel poverty by 2030, including through introducing a social tariff for energy.
• Make clean technology available for everyone - Ensure that low-income households benefit from technologies to cut emissions. Provide them with free heat pumps and support them in switching to electric cars.
• Double bus services - Double bus services by 2030 to help people without a car access jobs, amenities, and social networks easily and affordably.
• Reduce the cost of electricity - Lower electricity prices to internationally competitive levels so industries can go green without risking job losses or businesses moving abroad.  
• Invest in green jobs - Deliver a fair transition for workers in sectors like oil and gas, vehicle manufacturing and steel. This must include retraining for equivalent jobs in other industries or, where appropriate, remaining within existing sectors.  
• Support low-carbon farming - Increase subsidies for low-carbon farming and support farmers to diversify into renewable energy generation, ensuring they can significantly contribute to cutting emissions.

6. The YouGov polling was commissioned for Friends of the Earth’s Fairness Test report and can be viewed here.

7. Over 15 years ago, Friends of the Earth’s Big Ask Campaign led to the adoption of the Climate Change Act 2008. The High Court has held that two of the government's previous decarbonisation plans - the Net Zero Strategy and the Carbon Budget Delivery Plan - were unlawful and breached the Act following legal challenges by Friends of the Earth and sector allies.

8. About Friends of the Earth: Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northern Ireland (EWNI) is the UK's largest grassroots network. We're part of a global environmental justice community dedicated to the protection of the natural world and the wellbeing of everyone in it. We bring together more than two million people in 70 countries, combining people power all over the world to transform local actions into global impact. For more information visit: https://friendsoftheearth.uk/ and follow us on X or Instagram at @friends_earth, or find us on LinkedIn