The Climate Change Committee announces the UK’s progress towards net zero

On 18 July 2024, the Climate Change Committee published its statutory 2024 Progress Report to Government, providing a comprehensive overview of the government’s progress to date in reducing carbon emissions.

This article reveals the committee’s findings and the ten actions that have been recommended to the government, to achieve net zero by 2030.

Urgent action is needed to get on track for the UK’s 2030 target

The UK has committed to reduce emissions in 2030 by 68% compared to 1990 levels. It’s the first UK target set in line with net zero. Now only six years away, the committee reports that the country isn’t on track to hit this target despite a significant reduction in emissions in 2023. Much of the progress to date has come from phasing out coal-generated electricity, with the last coal-fired power station closing later this year. 

Last year saw a significant fall in emissions, as well as some good progress on policy by the previous government: 

• Confirmation of the zero-emission vehicle mandate - leaving the Energy Charter Treaty, which is not net zero-aligned.
• An increase to total funding and individual grants for heat pumps in homes via the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which has led to a significant increase in take-up.

However, the Climate Change Committee reports that this isn’t enough.

Priority actions

The committee note that the previous government gave inconsistent messages on its commitment to the actions needed to reach net zero, with cancellations of, and delays and exemptions to, important policies. Of particular concern to the committee were changes to buildings policy, including exempting 20% of households from the phase-out of fossil-fuel boilers by 2035. These could seriously undermine the UK’s ability to reach its targets.

The committee reports that by 2030:

• Annual offshore wind installations must increase by at least three times, onshore wind installations will need to double and solar installations must increase by five times.
• Approximately 10% of existing homes in the UK will need to be heated by a heat pump, compared to only approximately 1% today.
• The market share of new electric cars needs to increase from 16.5% today to nearly 100%.

The report sets out ten priority actions for the remainder of this year, where rapid progress is needed to make up lost ground.

• Make electricity cheaper - removing policy costs from electricity prices to support industrial electrification and ensure the lower running costs of heat pumps compared to fossil-fuel boilers are reflected in household bills.
• Reverse recent policy rollbacks - remove the exemption of 20% of households from the 2035 fossil-fuel boiler installation phase-out, address the gap left by removing obligations on landlords to improve the energy efficiency of rented homes and reinstate the 2030 phase-out of new fossil-fuel car and van sales. 
• Remove planning barriers for heat pumps, electric vehicle charge points and onshore wind. 
• Introduce a comprehensive programme for decarbonisation of public sector buildings. 
• Effectively design and implement the upcoming renewable energy contract for difference (CfD) auctions - ensure funding and auction design for the sixth and seventh allocation rounds are appropriate to deliver at least 50 GW of offshore wind by 2030.
• Accelerate electrification of industrial heat - strengthen the UK Emissions Trading Scheme to ensure that its price is sufficient to incentivise decarbonisation and that support is available for a rapid transition to electric heat across much of industry.
• Ramp up tree planting and peatland restoration. 
• Publish a strategy to support skills - support workers in sectors which need to grow or transition and in communities that may be adversely impacted.

The committee’s report isn’t happy reading for the new government and follows a critical assessment of progress to towards achieving climate targets by the Office for Environmental Protection, that found ‘the government is largely off track to meet its ambitions and its legal obligations’. 

Achieving the UK’s climate objectives will require a mix of policy tools, including investment, taxation and regulation. If the new government is to deliver on its net zero manifesto pledge to accelerate towards net zero, we can expect to see some reform of environmental regulation across a number of business sectors. 

For further information, please contact the energy and resource management team.