2 Embedding sustainable development
across the goals
13. The BOND Beyond 2015 group, which is made up
of over 100 organisations, have stated that the post-2015 process
"creates a vital opportunity to bring development and environment
concerns, approaches and solutions together within one integrated
framework—one that can deliver mutually reinforcing progress
in both areas."[33]
Helen Dennis of Christian Aid told us "the three dimensions
of sustainable development—economic, environment and social—should
be adequately reflected, both across the targets but also within
the goal headlines themselves."[34]
She added
Integration is clearly absolutely critical, given
the twin challenges around extreme poverty but also we must ensure
that inter-generational justice, sustainability, the eradication
of poverty is not just a one-off event, that it is then sustained
in the future and is not undermined by the impacts of disasters
and climate change. [35]
Dominic White of WWF told us "We see some very
well crafted goals [in the OWG report] in terms of the balance
of the three dimensions within them, and you could look at the
food goal or the water goal for examples of that perhaps. There
is always more work to be done; it is not an exact science."
[36] The Secretary
General's synthesis report stated:
All voices have called for a people-centred and
planet-sensitive agenda to ensure human dignity, equality, environmental
stewardship, healthy economies, freedom from want and fear, and
a renewed global partnership for sustainable development. Tackling
climate change and fostering sustainable development agendas are
two mutually reinforcing sides of the same coin. [37]
Natural environment and climate
change
14. The STEPS Centre told us "the goals should
take into account existing scientific evidence regarding a 'safe
operating space' in which development can proceed without jeopardising
development opportunities for future generations. Inter-generational
issues should therefore be central to the goals, and their implementation
in the UK."[38]
BOND Beyond 2015 called for environmental sustainability to be
incorporated as "a 'green thread' that is considered and
addressed in all goals".[39]
DFID told us "The Government is committed to sustainable
development, and ensuring that it is effectively integrated across
the post-2015 agenda is a key priority for the UK". They
wanted "to see a green thread of environmental sustainability
and good stewardship of natural resources effectively integrated
across the framework in key areas, such as food, water, energy
and growth as these sectors are the key drivers of environmental
degradation".[40]
The notion of a 'green thread' echoes the phrase used by the Prime
Minister about the importance of a 'golden thread' of
conditions that enable open economies and open
societies to thrive. These include the rule of law, the independence
of the judiciary …free media and association… good governance
and the presence of property rights. In short, the foundations
for the sustained economic growth that lifts countries out of
poverty. [41]
BIODIVERSITY
15. WWF have calculated that:
Between 1970 and 2008, low-income countries experienced
a 60% decline in species populations, while high-income countries
avoided any losses. In effect, high-income countries are outsourcing
the loss of species and habitats to lower-income countries. For
example, the increasing demand for soy products in Europe and
the US has resulted in forests being cleared in the Amazon, to
make way for soy plantations. Such inequitable degradation of
ecosystems will prevent economic, social and environmental sustainability
from being achieved within the environmental limits of our one
planet. Proportionally, high-income countries would require more
than three planets to sustain their current levels of consumption,
compared to middle income countries that rely on a little more
than one planet and low-income countries that draw on only two
thirds of the planet's resources. [42]
It concluded that "we now take 50% more each
year from nature than the planet can replenish. This means we
would need 1.5 planets for the world to replenish all the natural
resources we currently demand. We would need three planets by
2050 if we keep consuming at the rate that is predicted."
[43]
16. When we spoke to Dieter Helm, Chair of the Natural
Capital Committee, in November 2014, he explained that he had
not been asked to comment specifically on the Sustainable Development
Goals,[44] but had advised
the Government on the risks to natural capital and establishing
natural capital accounts. He told us:
We have pushed very hard for the ONS to produce
proper accounts and the ONS have produced the first partial natural
capital accounts for non-renewables, which show that they are
going down and, therefore, show that the Government are not achieving
the objective of maintaining natural capital intact. [45]
Karl Falkenberg, Director General of Environment
at the European Commission, told us that they are "working
to make available in environmental accounts, not just domestic
resource use, but global resource use; meaning that we don't want
to just take what has been used domestically in Europe to produce,
but to see how and where those resources were sourced abroad and
take a global picture into account". [46]
Defra told us that the UK is "having conversations"
in the EU and UN about natural capital accounting. [47]
17. Andrew Scott of the Overseas Development Institute
(ODI) told us that the Millennium Development Goals were not sufficiently
focused on the environment. He believed that:
MDG7 was not achieved because it was a badly
conceived goal and the targets underneath it were, let's be honest,
not entirely about environmental sustainability and some of them
were pretty unambitious. The message that we got on environmental
sustainability was that it is an add-on. The message that we want
to convey with the SDGs is that environmental sustainability is
an essential component of all development processes.[48]
However, despite the scale of the challenges around
biodiversity, global leaders do not appear to be prioritising
it. Dan Rogerson MP, Under-Secretary of State at Defra, told us:
We need to make sure that we embed all the aspects
of policy for which Defra is responsible. The concern is that,
if we put all the environmental goals into a silo, that will be
the bit that does not get the funding and does not get the delivery
as the programme moves forward. So we want to cut that right the
way across, so that wherever people invest and wherever they make
progress on development, it will be truly sustainable and we will
the outcomes that we want. [49]
He told us that the reason that no Defra Minister
had attended a recent UN conference on biodiversity was that only
40 member states had sent ministers.[50]
18. The Millennium Development Goals gave insufficient
attention to environmental protection and sustainable development.
The prioritisation of aid resources on vital areas of human development
such as health and education, was at the expense of an integrated
sustainable development agenda. The Open Working Group's proposals
provide a broader framework which better captures the complexity
and inter-dependency of the relationship between people and planet.
The mix of standalone goals and integrated indicators has the
potential to be just as action-orientated as the MDGs, but have
the advantage of being more comprehensive. It includes innovative
tools such as Natural Capital Accounting which help Governments
measure what really matters to support decision making and guide
policy. The Government, despite its innovative work on developing
Natural Capital Accounts, is not currently showing sufficient
leadership around biodiversity and environmental protection. It
should actively champion this area in the Sustainable Development
Goals in international negotiations, so that the 'green thread'
that runs throughout the Goals leads to real improvements in environmental
protection and improved outcomes by 2030.
CLIMATE CHANGE
19. Progress on climate change and poverty alleviation
are interdependent. Stakeholder Forum told us:
Eradicating poverty in the poorest parts of the
world must… go hand in hand with reducing carbon emissions
and pollution in the developed world, and with using finite resources
more efficiently. Otherwise efforts to secure development and
poverty eradication in the developing countries will increasingly
be overwhelmed by the adverse impacts of global changes arising
mainly from unsustainable practices in the developed world and
middle income countries. [51]
Andrew Scott of ODI told us:
Climate change presents the greatest threat to
sustainable development and poverty eradication and if action
is not taken on climate change then not only will poverty eradication
and the millennium development goal types of goals be more difficult
and more expensive to achieve, but in future, and perhaps towards
the end of the SDG period, we risk seeing people being impoverished
by climate change, a regressing of the gains that have been made.
[52]
20. The Open Working Group's June 2014 report proposed
a separate goal on climate change, whilst acknowledging that the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is the primary
international, inter-governmental forum for negotiating the global
response to climate change.[53]
The Secretary General's report explicitly states that the new
agenda must "address the drivers of climate change and its
consequences". [54]
21. A recent joint article by WWF and Care urged
that governments use the fact that there are parallel processes
aiming to reach ambitious goals for both sustainable development
and climate change in late 2015 to ensure that the two processes
inform each other:
Recent negotiations on the SDGs and parallel
discussions within the UNFCCC have revealed that governments often
view the relationship between the two with caution - and, even,
scepticism. … [We] call for greater cohesion between the
two processes. We are convinced that if we are to build ambition
for integrated action much stronger cooperation is urgently needed
between these two negotiating processes. [55]
Thomas Lingard of Unilever said
business is looking at the state of the international
politics, trying to get a read on the level of political ambition
to make a shift in the trajectory of business-as-usual. This is
particularly true when it comes to climate and decarbonisation
and the kinds of shifts that are required in the energy system.
I think these international statements of intent to go in a particular
direction at a particular level of ambition are incredibly powerful
because of that signalling value. [56]
22. Christian Aid told us however that "Despite
their support for climate visibility, [the Government] has been
ambivalent about inclusion of a 'Climate Change goal'. …
A climate goal is the only way of ensuring visibility and prioritisation,
and clearly connecting action on climate change to poverty eradication."
[57] Helen Dennis
of Christian Aid said
the challenge that is presented to us in terms
of remaining below two degrees going forward is absolutely enormous
and requires such a seismic shift in terms of our energy supplies,
our approach to consumption, carbon emissions and so on. Everything
that is possible to be done needs to be done. Therefore, ensuring
that climate change is a headline within the Sustainable Development
Goals and building that momentum ahead of Paris is one way in
which we can try to drive the change that is needed in low carbon
investment, climate resilient development and so on. [58]
Andrew Scott of ODI believed that the SDGs should
"retain a separate climate change goal but we also make sure
that climate change mitigation and adaptation and resilience are
weaved through the targets of the other goals, particularly those
related to the other environmental challenges and natural resource
uses."[59]
23. DFID told us that:
The [SDGs] framework must include measures to
fully and visibly integrate climate change action, including:
(a) Ambitious, climate-smart goals and targets
in goals such as energy, water, agriculture deforestation, disaster
resilience, natural resource management, and others as relevant;
(b) Clear language on the need to hold the increase
in global average temperature below a 2°C rise in accordance
with existing international agreements.[60]
The Secretary of State for International Development,
Justine Greening MP, did not directly answer our questions about
having a separate climate change objective in the SDGs, but told
us: "We certainly would not want to see the issue of climate
change or, indeed, any broader sustainability in any way minimised
in the framework that we get for 2015."[61]
Amber Rudd MP, Under-Secretary of State at DECC, told us that
she would "be disappointed if the words 'climate change'
did not appear in one of the goals" but would leave it to
the international negotiations.[62]
DECC officials emphasised how the UNFCCC and Sustainable Development
Goals negotiations should complement each other:
Through the UNFCCC negotiations, we are trying
to agree a set of commitments from countries; they are going to
set targets for emission reductions. What we are looking at through
the sustainable development goals is something that is going to
help countries to look at what they have signed up for, in terms
of their obligations and the direction of travel, but how are
they going to deliver on the targets that they have agreed as
part of the UNFCCC.[63]
24. Justine Greening told us: "I can be absolutely
categorical that we see this whole area of sustainability as key.
It is one of the reasons why we are doing so much work on climate
change, but in my department we work hand in hand with DECC and
also Defra very much on adaptation."[64]
Andrew Scott of ODI told us "what we should be aiming for
is the levels of ambition that the UK has in its own legislation
being taken forward and promoted in the international field.[65]
Amber Rudd told us that for DECC "our leadership, and our
role in delivery on climate change, which is surely the most important
thing, is focused on the UNFCCC endeavour to reach an international
agreement in Paris next year. That is where our leadership, determination
and focus are being played out."[66]
Community Energy and fossil fuel subsidies
25. Our previous inquiries have identified two areas
where such leadership could be demonstrated—on community
energy and ending fossil fuel subsidies. In our March 2014 report
on Green Finance, we highlighted the importance of support
for community-scale energy projects and policy stability to help
tackle climate change.[67]
Amber Rudd told us:
Community energy is a vital part of producing
and encouraging renewable energy locally, which is why my Department
launched its community energy strategy earlier this year. We are
very engaged and supportive of local communities, providing them
with information and financial guidance about how to set schemes
up. Community energy is an essential part of delivering on our
targets and on local energy supplies. [68]
She highlighted how the Government has promoted shared
ownership schemes, which have been successful in Germany, and
will continue to learn from other successes. However, the Government's
statements of support for the enormous potential of community
energy has been undermined by the decision of the Financial Conduct
Authority not to register new community energy co-operatives.
[69] In response,
DECC simply told us that it is "working with community energy
stakeholders and the FCA to ensure the right balance is struck
between consumer/investor protection and realising the full potential
of community energy." [70]
26. The Open Working Group outcome document addressed
the need for rationalising inefficient fossil fuel subsidies as
part of the actions needed to tackle climate change. Our December
2013 report on Energy Subsidies highlighted the extent
of fossil fuel energy subsidies in the UK, which we concluded
were "inconsistent with the global effort to tackle climate
change".[71] In
2009, the G-20 pledged to phase out "inefficient" and
"harmful" fossil fuel subsidies as part of a wider strategy
for combating climate change,[72]
which was re-iterated in the November 2014 G-20 Brisbane summit.[73]
The Secretary General's synthesis report similarly states that
"Harmful fossil fuel subsidies, both direct and indirect,
should be phased out."[74]
A recent paper by ODI on energy subsidies highlights that some
$600 billion is spent to support carbon-intensive energy, including
$1.2 billion in the UK, principally in the form of tax breaks
for North Sea oil exploration.[75]
In its Response to our report on Energy subsidies, the
Government stated that it "does not believe that it has any
harmful energy policies ... The North Sea regime should not be
considered a subsidy".[76]
Amber Rudd told us that energy subsidies:
is a question that we will go on debating. We
have to make sure that we keep our electricity coming and our
lights on. There are various subsidies for various elements of
fossil fuels at the moment, but we are focused on renewables as
a replacement as far as possible, and will continue to be so.
[77]
In its 2014 Autumn Statement, the Government announced
further tax breaks for oil and gas exploration.[78]
27. The similar timing of the SDG and climate
change negotiations presents an important opportunity to embed
climate change thinking throughout the SDGs—to avoid development
that exacerbates climate change while also building decarbonisation
and adaptation into development. However, at the same time as
stating a commitment to ambitious action on climate change, the
Government is pursuing contradictory policies by effectively giving
subsidies for fossil fuels. The Government should publically
support a separate climate change goal in the SDGs given the importance
of reaching an ambitious global climate change agreement in Paris
next year. It should also re-consider and rapidly phase out its
continued subsidies to carbon intensive energy sources in line
with the commitments made at Rio +20 and the Secretary General's
call to phase out "harmful subsidies". The Government
needs to do more domestically to support the transition to a low
carbon economy, including urgently working with the FCA to make
it easier for community groups to register as energy co-operatives.
The Government should clearly set out the steps it is taking to
achieve this.
Economic considerations
Trade and poverty
28. The Open Working Group report highlighted trade
as an important element of the 'means of implementation'. It set
out indicators for promoting "a universal, rules-based, open,
non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system",
to significantly increase exports from developing countries.[79]
Michael Gidney of the Fairtrade Foundation told us
if you organise trade in a certain way, then
trade can be the most incredible vehicle for fighting poverty
and achieving sustainability. To do that you need good standards,
standards across the range of sustainable goals, so environmental
and social and economic standards, but you need also the highest
standards of accountability and transparency—accountability
to both ends of the supply chain, to consumers and to producers.[80]
CAFOD highlighted the impact of "unfair trade
rules"… "on the lives of people living in extreme
poverty"[81] and
suggest that "DFID needs to have a stronger role on looking
at development impacts of other UK policies, whether these are
implemented through bilateral relationships or in multilateral
trade deals."[82]
Karl Falkenberg of the European Commission observed:
With the opening of world trade, we have seen
that a lot of developing countries have discovered substantive
economic growth. To the extent that that growth is equally distributed
within those countries, it has certainly been a useful element
of addressing those concerns [about poverty].[83]
The Global Sustainability Institute warned that "the
UK Government should ensure that its involvement in… any
trade agreements, such as the proposed [Transatlantic Trade and
Investment Partnership], are in line with commitments on sustainable
development."[84]
Karl Falkenberg from the European Commission told us that "If
the EU and the US could agree on and set joint standards, that
process would certainly be strengthened",[85]
but cautioned that this would depend on the outcome of the negotiations:
The EU's negotiating mandate clearly states that
the outcome should not in any way limit or downgrade environmental
or social legislation in the respective partners, so TTIP should
not lead to a watering down in the United States or the EU. But
that is our negotiating mandate, not the outcome of the negotiations.[86]
29. International trade has played an important
role in reducing extreme poverty. But such gains often come at
the expense of the environment. It is equally important that the
poorest and most vulnerable groups are not further impoverished
by changing trade rules and agreements. The Government's renewed
focus on income poverty should not view economic development in
isolation, but equally consider the environmental and social impacts
of this economic activity and promote low carbon growth. It should
demand the highest standards of environmental protection in trade
deals, and ensure unequivocally that there is no potential for
these to be undermined through dispute settlement mechanisms.
We intend to look into TTIP in a future inquiry.
AIR QUALITY
30. Justine Greening told us that:
We have seen with development in China just how
much broad-based growth can lift people out of poverty. In 1981,
over 80% of people in China were living on $1.25 or less a day.
By 2009, that had fallen to 12%.[87]
But she also acknowledged that this has come at an
environmental cost:
When growth happens, it has to be sustainable
because if it is not, you then have to retrofit the growth that
has taken place so that it is one that people can live with. I
have also been to Beijing and seen some of the air pollution challenges
there. Of course here in the UK we have some of our own air pollution
challenges as well. …this whole area is so important to make
sure that it is going right the way through the next development
framework.[88]
Our reports on Air Quality have highlighted
the importance of understanding the environmental impacts of transport
emissions in the UK,[89]
but such concerns are even more acute in developing countries,
where industrial export activity and road traffic emissions combine
to adversely affect urban air quality. The United Nations Environment
Programme estimate that more than 1 billion people are exposed
to outdoor air pollution annually, and causes up to 1 million
premature deaths each year.[90]
Karl Falkenberg pointed to 400,000 premature deaths a year in
Europe from poor air quality, and highlighted the link between
high economic growth in China over the last 20 years and its air
pollution. He concluded that:
Similar problems occur in many other emerging
economies with economic success. At the moment, a lot of environmental
problems are rapidly growing, and I think there is also a rapidly
growing understanding by the responsible governments that they
need to find answers to these challenges.[91]
Justine Greening told us that "this Government
will take the issue of air pollution incredibly seriously, including
in relation to development."[92]
31. As we stated in our recent report on Action
on Air Quality, air pollution is an "invisible killer"
in the UK. However, poor air quality is also a major issue and
cause of premature death in cities in many developing countries.
The UK should lead international efforts to improve air quality
in cities in developing countries, where an increasing number
of people live. This could include international knowledge sharing
around effective low emissions zones, low-emissions transport,
and vehicle and fuel standards to save lives.
SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION
32. While trade has helped to reduce poverty, its
benefits may not be as widely shared as they should be. Helen
Dennis of Christian Aid highlighted that "it is 20% of people
who consume 80% of the world's resources, so there is massive
inequity in the way in which we consume."[93]
The Open Working Group outcome document included a goal—'Goal
12' on 'sustainable consumption and production'—with indicators
on 'Sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources
(12.2)', reducing food waste and food losses (12.3), and companies
adopting sustainable practices and integrating sustainability
information in their reporting (12.5).[94]
The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
believed that "a truly universal SDG agenda requires a shift
from a North-South development model to a universal global compact
… [and] equitably shared responsibilities for all development
partners."[95] Dominic
White of WWF thought it "imperative that sustainable consumption
and production stays in this [SDGs] framework, because I think
developing countries will frown upon the developed nations if
we do not find a way to look at ourselves and our actual consumption
of resources".[96]
The Royal Society stated:
The SDGs and the Government's contribution to
them should not overlook the environment or the implications of
population and consumption patterns for a finite planet: (i) Future
projected changes in climate and demography must be considered
when developing policies in all areas of Government.; and (ii)
Socio-economic systems and institutions must be developed which
are not dependent on continued material consumption for growth.[97]
33. Dominic White of WWF believed that the approach
in the Open Working Group's draft SDGs of "decoupling environmental
degradation from economic growth … is the right direction
of travel and … the onus is on developed countries to start
looking at how we use fewer resources to still maintain a good
standard of living".[98]
The Secretary General's recent draft synthesis report notes that
"the longer we wait to take action towards sustainable production
and consumption, the more it will cost to solve the problem and
the greater the technological challenges will be." [99]
34. Sustainable consumption and production requires
action by businesses as well as Government. As we noted in our
report on Outcomes of the Rio+20 Earth Summit, corporate
sustainability reporting has the potential to help incentivise
businesses "to fully address the environmental and social
aspects of sustainable development".[100]
The Government initiated emissions reporting by UK-listed large
companies at the time of the Summit. The Global Sustainability
Institute told us that the SDG process
provides an opportunity to link corporate sustainability
reporting with the goals, setting a framework for action by governments,
intergovernmental institutions, and also companies….It will
also require the development of corporate reporting indicators
which are clearly linked to the SDGs and their targets.[101]
Karl Falkenberg told us that "we feel that environmental
reporting needs to go beyond simply carbon emissions and energy
use."[102] Dieter
Helm of the Natural Capital Committee told us that his view was
"if you really want to mainstream these natural capital issues,
then you have to mainstream them right through normal corporate
decision-making. The only way to do that is to stick them in the
accounts."[103]
Aviva Investors have made a number of recommendations for improving
sustainable development investment. They advocated governments
ensuring that "national corporate governance codes …
integrate sustainable development."[104]
35. In evidence to our Circular economy inquiry,
Tearfund told us that a "circular economy requires a seismic
shift in the way we conduct economic activity and the way we view
waste". [105]
They told us
In return it offers a triple dividend: improved
living standards, greater efficiency and reduced environmental
degradation. This dividend is available in developing countries
as well as developed countries. Indeed, the implementation of
circular economy principles offers fresh opportunities for greater
poverty reduction, economic growth, environmental sustainability,
resilience to commodity price fluctuations and public health (via
reduced pollution) in developing countries.[106]
In our report, we highlighted the European Commission's
proposals to improve resource productivity, including a target
to increase it by a minimum of 30% by 2030.[107]
36. The European Commission's June 2014 Communication
on the Sustainable Development Goals stated:
Current patterns of production and consumption
are not sustainable. For consumption, key actions are promoting
the use of energy and resource efficient and environmentally friendly
products, gradually eliminating environmentally harmful subsidies
and sustainable procurement. Production issues include promoting
innovative and resource-efficient production, corporate sustainability
reporting, product life cycle assessment, sustainable construction,
waste and chemicals management and the promotion of eco-entrepreneurship
and eco-innovation.[108]
Karl Falkenberg of the European Commission told us
that:
A Europe scarce in raw materials needs to …
look at waste not as something that we need to dump in landfills
but as a valuable resource for the next generation of products
that we want to build. … 600,000 jobs [could be] created
in Europe by implementing circular economy objectives in bringing
landfill to an end, recycling up to 70% of waste and at least
recovering the energy of the remaining 30%. … Becoming 30%
more resource efficient by 2030—our studies are talking
of some 2 million jobs that would be added.[109]
Dan Rogerson told us in relation to sustainable consumption
and production that:
It is cross-cutting, so you can't deal with it
in isolation, and I don't think you would want to deal with that
in isolation. We can make real progress if we integrate it across
all the sectors where it has an impact—food, water, energy
and anything connected with growth. We need to look at the issues
around the sustainability of that growth.[110]
He told us that the Government were seeking "to
play an active part in the UN's 10-year Framework of Programmes
on Sustainable Consumption and Production, in particular the Consumer
Information Programme.[111]
Mainstreaming climate and environment in all programmes
37. Andrew Scott of ODI told us:
I think [DFID's] record on climate change …
is pretty good. Some of the other environmental challenges tend
to take second place to the climate change challenge. Hopefully
an SDG agenda will encourage all aid agencies to increasingly
pay more attention to environmental sustainability, not just in
the immediate term of the programme or project life but the longer-term
consequences.[112]
WWF were concerned however about recent change in
DFID's climate and environment assessment process for assessing
aid programmes.[113]
In response, Justine Greening explained that:
We have gone through a programme within DFID
called Future Fit, where we looked across the piece with country
programmes about how we could make sure that climate and climate
resilience in particular was integrated into all that work. We
have now identified seven countries that are going to be almost
like challenger countries that are going to do more innovative
work, that are going to share that learning, and we very much
recognise that these two things cannot be taken apart. They are
inextricably linked. [114]
38. The UK should support the vital goal of sustainable
and resource efficient consumption and production in the Sustainable
Development Goals. Rising population growth means 'business as
usual' economic models of disposable products are not an option
in the 21st Century. Resource efficiency is something
that makes both environmental and economic sense. It is therefore
disappointing that the UK is taking only small steps when a larger
shift towards a more resource efficient economy is needed. Whilst
the Government supports ambitious goals for other countries for
poverty reduction, it is reluctant to commit the UK to such ambitious
goals in the EU. There is also a role for businesses, which can
be supported by more detailed corporate sustainability reporting.
The Government should accelerate its work on resource efficiency
and the circular economy, including through negotiating ambitious
targets within the European Union. The Government should expand
the requirement for corporate sustainability reporting beyond
carbon emissions. Defra should ensure that this agenda is embraced
across Government, and DFID should review its aid programmes to
find opportunities to fund circular economy approaches. As it
considers how best to support its future aid programmes to promote
economic growth, it needs to learn lessons from the environmental
degradation that has frequently accompanied rapid economic growth.
It should ensure that all projects funded with UK aid, from international
to community level, including the components implemented by delivery
partners, are screened for climate and environment risks. It should
also ensure that economic development related programmes fully
safeguard biodiversity and tread a new path which de-couples economic
growth from natural resource use.
Social and human development,
and inequality
39. The Millennium Development Goals focused international
attention on social and human development, but Helen Dennis of
Christian Aid noted that "There are still 1.2 billion people
living in extreme income poverty globally, and that is something
that needs to be addressed, not just around income but …
the environmental sustainability goal. … There are 2.5 billion
people still without access to sanitation. These are significant
justice and human rights issues that need to be addressed."[115]
Action Against Hunger told us:
we are concerned that the UK Government gives
too much importance to economic development and are concerned
it is too often viewed as a 'magic bullet' in development. We
have seen time and time again, that economic growth on its own
is insufficient in improving the nutrition status of countries.[116]
Andrew Scott of ODI believed that high consumption
amongst the rising number of middle income was the most serious
threat to environment and resource consumption:
Clearly a priority is to enable the people who
are living in extreme poverty to get out of extreme poverty. The
additional consumption of resources that that itself is going
to entail in the global scheme of things is not hugely significant.
The increased environmental degradation and the damage to the
environment is going to come from growth and income increases
among middle class, middle income people. The SDG package has
to say something about that as well as to address the poverty
eradication challenge.[117]
40. The World Bank has written that:
High inequality is for many of us morally unacceptable
and a symptom of a broken social contract. High inequality can
lead to social conflict and instability which might result in
lower economic standards for everyone. High inequality is in many
cases a reflection that everyone does not have the same chances
in life, that some have access to basic economic, social and human
rights and others not, that opportunities are related to where
you were born, who your parents are, or your race or gender.
Moreover, no country has transited to high income
status with very high levels of inequality, and countries with
the highest living standards have, in general, lower levels of
inequality than low income countries. So there are many reasons
why reducing inequality is a valid development objective by itself.
Reducing inequality is a valid development goal,
and in the medium and long-run it is, most likely, the only way
to sustainably increase incomes of those at the bottom.[118]
The Open Working Group outcome document included
a proposed SDG on inequality. It proposed 'Goal 10' to "reduce
inequality within and among countries". The main indicator
for this would, they suggested, be "by 2030, progressively
achieve and sustain income growth of the bottom 40% of the population
at a rate higher than the national average". [119]
The Secretary General's synthesis report highlighted "Dignity"
as one of six "essential elements" of the SDGs, and
identified poverty and inequality as "defining challenges
of our time":
Eradicating poverty by 2030 is the overarching
objective of the sustainable development agenda…. The defining
challenge of our time is to close the gap between our determination
to ensure a life of dignity for all on the one hand, and the reality
of persisting poverty and deepening inequality on the other.[120]
His report highlighted the importance of ensuring
"equality, non-discrimination, equity and inclusion at all
levels":
We must pay special attention to the people,
groups and countries most in need. This is the century of women:
we will not realize our full potential if half of humanity continues
to be held back. We also need to include the poor, children, adolescents,
youth, and the aged, as well as the unemployed, rural populations,
slum dwellers, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples,
migrants, refugees and displaced persons, vulnerable groups and
minorities. These also include those affected by climate change,
those living in [Less Developed Countries], landlocked countries,
small island developing states, middle-income countries, conflict
countries or in areas under occupation, in places struck by complex
medical and humanitarian emergencies or in situations affected
by terrorism. And they have called for an end to all forms of
gender inequality, gender-based discrimination, and violence against
women, children and young boys and girls. [121]
41. BOND Beyond 2015 thought that "The UK Government
should push for inequality to be set as a priority in the SDG
framework by … adopting a stand-alone goal on inequality."[122]
They stated:
The UK Government is giving insufficient attention
to the link between inequality and environmental sustainability.
Addressing inequality is vital for sustainable development. Some
of the poorest communities, especially indigenous communities,
are highly dependent on land and natural resources for their livelihoods,
assets which are increasingly under threat due to climate change.
Climate related natural disasters are likely to threaten long
term poverty eradication. And the excessive consumption of the
world's wealthiest people is the biggest source of environmental
stress, with just 11% of the global population generating approximately
50% of global carbon emissions.[123]
Pope Francis recently put this in stark terms when
he called increasing inequality "the root of social evil".[124]
Oxfam's recent Even it up report highlighted how
economic inequality has reached extreme levels.
From Ghana to Germany, Italy to Indonesia, the gap between rich
and poor is widening. In 2013, seven out of 10 people lived in
countries where economic inequality was worse than 30 years ago,
and in 2014 Oxfam calculated that just 85 people owned as much
wealth as the poorest half of humanity.[125]
42. Kevin Watkins of the Overseas Development Institute
has set out an "equity agenda for the post-2015 goals"
with "stepping stone equity targets".[126]
In Zambia, he noted, "the richest 10% saw their share of
consumption rise from 33% to 43% between 2000 and 2005",
and "without rising inequality, economic growth would have
lifted another 700,000 people out of poverty in Tanzania".[127]
He concluded that:
Lower inequality is not an automatic route to
poverty reduction (compare and contrast China with less unequal
Tanzania). On the other hand, rising inequality from high initial
levels is a pretty much guaranteed route to slower poverty reduction.[128]
43. Helen Dennis of Christian Aid told us that it
is possible to set a measurable yardstick limit for inequality:
There is a fairly concrete proposal that Joseph
Stiglitz put on the table, where he has basically said that there
should be an assumption or a consensus that the… post-tax
income of the top 10% should be no greater than the post-transfer
income of the bottom 40%, which is essentially a Palma ratio of
one. That is very stretching. For a country like South Africa,
for example, with such exceptional levels of economic inequality,
you would look at that and think that is almost unattainable,
but I think it is about setting the direction of travel.[129]
The UK's Sustainable Development Indicators measure
median income as well as GDP, in order to better reflect "economic
prosperity experienced by people on a daily basis". The 2013
Sustainable Development Indicators report states: "Examining
income distribution can reveal the inequalities implicit in household
income".[130]
Although the World Bank has a goal to 'promote shared prosperity',
it has chosen to focus only on measuring the income growth of
the poorest 40%. The World Bank observed that while this might
be "a crude approximation of the socioeconomic status of
those at the bottom, it is a pertinent development goal for all
countries … regardless of the initial level of development,
regardless of the moment in the economic cycle…".[131]
44. Justine Greening told us that the Government's
focus is on "leaving no one behind and lifting people out
of extreme poverty and, in fact, eradicating that in a generation."[132]
She explained:
Our focus is on reaching to the very, very poorest
people in the world and eradicating extreme poverty. How their
circumstances relate to other people is a secondary consideration
from my perspective. … The work that we do … is about
reaching out to the very poorest people who often have absolutely
nothing, or perhaps have very little, and when disaster hits they
are often hit hardest and hit first and have the least capability
to be able to bounce back from that. Those are the people that
we are focusing on and that is personally where I feel the next
framework should focus as well.[133]
45. Inequality prevents sustainable development,
not only because it can undermine social cohesion and a sense
of shared well-being, but because some sections of societies may
be excluded from the benefits of development and prosperity. The
UK is right to have a focus on completing the task of the MDGs
in eliminating 'extreme poverty', but this can best be achieved
as part of a wider focus that includes tackling inequality to
help deal with both poverty and social cohesion. The UK should
support the inclusion in the SDGs of a range of inequality indicators
to measure and monitor inequality, and should design programmes
to tackle both extreme poverty and inequality simultaneously.
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34
Q93 Back
35
Q94 Back
36
Q94 Back
37
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 49 Back
38
STEPS Centre (SDG004) para 4 Back
39
BOND Beyond 2015 UK (SDG0015) Back
40
DFID (SDG 0011) paras 10-11 Back
41
Speech to the Transparency International Post 2015 High-Level event
(September 2014) Back
42
WWF More than the sum of its parts (2014) Back
43
WWF More than the sum of its parts (2014) Back
44
Oral evidence taken on 28 November 2014, HC 756, Q51 Back
45
Oral evidence taken on 28 November 2014, HC 756, Q13 Back
46
Q226 Back
47
Q158 Back
48
Q95 Back
49
Q131 Back
50
Q140 Back
51
Stakeholder Forum (SDG0021) Back
52
Q99 Back
53
United Nations Open Working Group proposal for Sustainable Development Goals
(July 2014) Goal 13 Back
54
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 65 Back
55
Huffington Post UNFCCC and Post-2015 Development: More Than the Sum of the Parts
(1 October 2014) Accessed 9 December 2014 Back
56
Q112 Back
57
Christian Aid (SDG0009) para 2.4 Back
58
Q98 Back
59
Q99 Back
60
DFID (SDG 0011) para 16 Back
61
Q8 Back
62
Q136 Back
63
Q163 Back
64
Q7 Back
65
Q101 Back
66
Q170 Back
67
Environmental Audit Committee, Twelfth report of session 2013-14,
Green Finance HC 191 Back
68
Q166 Back
69
The Guardian Green energy co-ops blocked by government regulator
(August 2014) Back
70
DECC (SDG0036) Back
71
Environmental Audit Committee, Ninth report of session 2013-14,
Energy Subsidies HC 61 Back
72
G20 Leaders Statement: The Pittsburgh Summit Back
73
G20 Principles on Energy Collaboration (16 November 2014) Back
74
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 102 Back
75
ODI paper Back
76
Government response Para 9 Back
77
Q165 Back
78
HM Treasury, Autumn Statement 2014 para 1.125 Back
79
United Nations Open Working Group proposal for Sustainable Development Goals
(July 2014) 17.10 Back
80
Q110 Back
81
CAFOD (SDG0012) para 3 Back
82
CAFOD (SDG0012) para 28 Back
83
Q238 Back
84
Global Sustainability Institute (SDG001) para 13 Back
85
Q241 Back
86
Q241 Back
87
Q13 Back
88
Q73 Back
89
Environmental Audit Committee Sixth report of 2014-15 Action on Air Quality
HC 212;Environmental Audit Committee, Ninth Report of Session
2010-12, Air quality: a follow up report, HC 1024 Back
90
United Nations Environment Programme Urban Air Pollution Accessed
9 December 2014 Back
91
Q237 Back
92
Q73 Back
93
Q96 Back
94
United Nations Open Working Group proposal for Sustainable Development Goals
(July 2014) Back
95
International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
(SDG0017) Back
96
Q96 Back
97
The Royal Society (SDG0019) para 1.b) Back
98
Q96 Back
99
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 76 Back
100
Environmental Audit Committee, Second report of session 2013-14,
Outcomes of the UN Rio+20 Earth Summit HC 200 para 41 Back
101
Global Sustainability Institute (SDG001) para 5 Back
102
Q227 Back
103
Oral evidence taken on 28 November 2014, HC 756, Q34 Back
104
Aviva Investors (SDG0007) para 1.4 Back
105
Tearfund (GCE0009) HC 214 para 1 Back
106
Tearfund (GCE0009) HC 214para 2 Back
107
Environmental Audit Committee, Third report of session 2014-15,
Growing a circular economy: Ending the throwaway society HC 214,
para 63 Back
108
European Commission A decent Life for all: from vision to collective action
COM(2014) 335 (June 2014) Back
109
Q225 Back
110
Q155 Back
111
Defra (SDG0037) Back
112
Q97 Back
113
Q97 Back
114
Q7 Back
115
Q96 Back
116
Action Against Hunger (SDG0035) para 2.5 Back
117
Q96 Back
118
World Bank Why didn't the World Bank Make Reducing Inequality One of its Goals?
Accessed 9 December 2014 Back
119
United Nations Open Working Group proposal for Sustainable Development Goals
(July 2014) 10.1 Back
120
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 67 Back
121
United Nations The Road to Dignity by 2030: Ending Poverty, Transforming All Lives and Protecting the Planet Synthesis Report of the Secretary-General On the Post-2015 Agenda - advanced unedited version
(December 2014) para 51 Back
122
BOND Beyond 2015 UK (SDG0015) para 2.14 Back
123
BOND Beyond 2015 UK (SDG0015) para 2.11 Back
124
Pope Francis Tweet 28 April 2014 Back
125
Oxfam Even it Up: Time to end extreme inequality (October
2014) Back
126
Kevin Watkins Leaving no-one behind: an equity agenda for the post-2015 goals
(October 2013) p2 Back
127
Kevin Watkins Leaving no-one behind: an equity agenda for the post-2015 goals
(October 2013) p3 Back
128
Kevin Watkins Leaving no-one behind: an equity agenda for the post-2015 goals
(October 2013) p8 Back
129
Q106 Back
130
Defra Sustainable Development Indicators (July 2013) p16 Back
131
World Bank Why didn't the World Bank Make Reducing Inequality One of its Goals?
Accessed 9 December 2014 Back
132
Q55 Back
133
Q51 Back
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