1Introduction
1.The 2008 Climate Change Act commits the UK to reducing carbon emissions by at least 80% by 2050 compared to 1990 levels.1 To meet this commitment, the Act requires the Government to set “carbon budgets” in law,2 with specific emissions reduction targets for each period leading up to 2050. Carbon budgets are a cap on the emissions allowed over successive five-year periods. They effectively serve as stepping stones on the way to the 2050 target. The Act also set up an independent body, the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), to advise the Government on the appropriate level for each carbon budget period. To fulfil its role, the CCC carries out modelling and projections to determine the level at which the budgets should be set, and provides its analysis and advice to Government before it sets each budget. In providing this advice the CCC assesses, by sector, what can be achieved to reduce emissions at least cost, taking account of available technologies and Government policy.
2.Once the level of a given carbon budget is set, the Government develops further detailed plans to ensure that policies are in place to help deliver the required level of emissions reduction over the years ahead. The CCC must produce an annual report to Parliament and the devolved legislatures, setting out the CCC’s views on the progress that has been made towards meeting the carbon budgets already set, the further progress that is needed to meet those budgets and the 2050 target, and whether these are likely to be met.
3.Four carbon budgets have so far been set in law, covering the period up to 2027. The first three budgets were set in May 2009 through the Carbon Budgets Order 2009.3 The Carbon Budget Order 2011, approved by the House on 28 June 2011,4 set the fourth budget for the period from 2023 to 2027.5
4.The level at which a carbon budget is set must be fixed in legislation “not later than 30th June in the 12th year before the beginning of the period in question”.6 The Secretary of State must therefore set the level of the fifth carbon budget (covering the period from 2028 to 2032) by 30 June 2016. As required by the Act,7 the CCC carried out analyses and produced its advice to the Secretary of State on the level at which it should be set. This advice was published on 26 November 20158 and was accompanied by a technical report setting out the CCC’s full analysis.9 Taking into account this advice and any representations made by the other national authorities, the Secretary of State must now set the carbon budget by laying a draft statutory instrument before Parliament. If the Government chooses to set the budget at a different level from that recommended by the CCC, the Act requires the Secretary of State to “also publish a statement setting out the reasons for that decision”.10
5.We launched our inquiry Setting the fifth carbon budget on 2 December 2015,11 to seek views on the CCC’s advice, inform the Government’s decision on whether to set the fifth carbon budget in legislation in line with this advice, and explore the main challenges the UK will face in meeting this budget. We received 45 pieces of written evidence, which can be found on our website,12 and held three oral evidence sessions with stakeholders from industry, academia and third sector organisations, the CCC, and the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). We are grateful to all those who took the time to contribute to this inquiry.
6.Chapter 2 of this report outlines the main CCC recommendations, the evidence we received as to whether these should be followed by the Secretary of State when setting the level of the fifth carbon budget, and our recommendations for the budget. In Chapter 3, we discuss in more detail the main policy challenges in meeting the fifth carbon budget across different sectors, what drivers may help address these challenges, and the need to set a clear, long-term policy framework to ensure that the UK is on the right track to drive the necessary investment to meet its target.
Box 1: Working towards our goals
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At the start of the 2015 Parliament we set out three goals for our scrutiny work:
Our work on setting the fifth carbon budget and this report are primarily focussed on our goal to influence the long-term approach to climate targets. Throughout the course of this Parliament, we welcome feedback on our work towards our goals. |
*Energy and Climate Change Committee, First report of session 2015-16, Our priorities for Parliament 2015–20, HC 368, para 35-37
3 Carbon Budgets Order 2009, SI 2009/1259
4 House of Commons Votes and Proceedings, Tuesday 28 June 2011
5 Carbon Budget Order 2011, SI 2011/1603
8 Committee on Climate Change, The Fifth Carbon Budget, The next step towards a low-carbon economy (November 2015)
9 Committee on Climate Change, Sectoral scenarios for the fifth carbon budget (November 2015)
11 Energy and Climate Change Committee, ‘Committee launches inquiry on setting the fifth carbon budget,’ accessed 4 April 2016
12 Energy and Climate Change Committee, ‘Setting the fifth carbon budget inquiry - publications,’ accessed 4 April 2016
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25 April 2016