Can the UK really hit 81% emissions reduction by 2035?
Downing Street just pledged to the world it will bring carbon output down to just one-fifth of 1990 levels within a decade.
Despite the hugely ambitious target given present policies and funding for net zero, Sir Keir Starmer has also vowed not to reach the goal by ‘telling people how to live their lives.’
Presenting ‘climate security’ as a ‘huge opportunity for investment for business, for British workers,’ the Prime Minister made the promises at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, today, Tuesday 11th November. The annual UN climate and environmental summit began the previous day.
The event has already drawn criticism for the notable absence of leaders from the 13 largest carbon dioxide-polluting countries on the planet, with heads of state from China, the US, India, and Indonesia among those failing to show. Combined, 42% of the world’s population are not represented by their country’s premier.
‘With the warning signals flashing red, a planet battered by increasingly severe floods, storms and heatwaves, and the election of climate denier President Trump, the need for climate leadership by the UK has never been more urgent,’ said Rosie Downes, Head of Campaigns at Friends of the Earth.
‘Keir Starmer’s 2035 carbon-reduction pledge is a step in the right direction but must be seen as a floor to the level of ambition not a ceiling. Deeper, faster cuts are needed to help avert the climate collision course we are on,’ she continued. ‘Furthermore, if these targets are to be credible, they must be backed by a clear plan to ensure they are met. The UK’s existing 2030 commitment is currently way off course.’
Britain has previously agreed to bring emissions down to 68% of 1990 levels by 2030, but is now on course to achieve just 59%. This latest pledge to achieve an 81% reduction in carbon dioxide output by 2035 builds on the previous aim of 78% in the same time frame, as per the Sixth Carbon Budget.
‘The election of Donald Trump places COP29 in an entirely different context. There is no secret of his dislike for renewable energy and willingness to withdraw America out of the Paris Agreement, meaning there is significant weight on the next decisions of world leaders,’ said Sonya Bedford, Energy and Natural Resources Partner at legal firm Spencer West LLP. ‘With a new Prime Minister at the helm, now is a key moment for him to step up and secure the UK’s leadership in climate action and emphasise to his peers and the rest of the world the need to move to renewable energy.’
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