New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
UK government plan for net zero under fire from Committees
9/3/2022
News
Both the Public Accounts Committee and the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee have criticised the UK government’s plan for achieving its net zero by 2050 target as ‘unclear’ and ‘insufficient’ in recent reports.
The Public Accounts Committee accuses the government of having ‘no clear plan for how the transition to net zero will be funded’ or ‘how it will replace income from taxes such as fuel duty’. It also says the government has ‘no reliable estimate of what the process of implementing the net zero policy is actually likely to cost British consumers, households, businesses or government itself’.
Similarly, the Lords Committee concludes that the government is likely to miss its 2050 target because it lacks credible plans for encouraging critical investment by consumers and businesses. It finds insufficient policy detail to incentivise the required investment of £50bn/y for transforming the country’s energy system.
The Lords Committee report also says that the government’s policies do not match the targets and lack the necessary clarity over fundamental financial incentives for securing private investment to fund new industrial and domestic energy technologies. It describes the plans for funding the transition, which took over two years for the government to publish, as ‘unclear’ and recommends that the government considers all funding options for energy investment.
The Public Accounts Committee has repeatedly said in recent reports that the government has failed to provide critical certainty for businesses and consumers. Instead, it has ‘too often pursued stop-start strategies which undermine confidence for business, investors and consumers in committing to measures which would reduce carbon emissions – especially when some green alternatives are still significantly more expensive than current options’.
The Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, Dame Meg Hillier MP, said: ‘[The] government is relying heavily on rapidly changing consumer behaviours and technological innovations to drive down the costs of green options, but it is not clear how it will support and encourage consumers to purchase greener products or incentivise businesses and drive change.’
A solution the Lords Committee offers is to establish a Transformation Taskforce, reporting to the Prime Minister and housed within the Cabinet Office. The interdepartmental taskforce would set out a clear roadmap for developing and implementing energy policies and coordinate and monitor their progress.
Lord Hollick, Chair of the Lords Committee, commented: ‘While money is a key challenge it isn’t the only one. We need better co-ordination across government and a real drive and focus to deliver net zero. This requires tackling highly sensitive, political decisions that affect all consumers and taxpayers… That is why we are calling for a new Energy Transformation Taskforce within government that will report directly to the Prime Minster and take the lead in setting and co-ordinating net zero strategy and policy across government.’
