Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP
Gorgie Dalry Gazette (Climate Change Bill)
Climate change is of critical importance and urgent action is needed at home and internationally.
The PM and Chancellor commissioned a review by respected former Chief Economist at the World Bank, Sir Nicholas Stern. The Stern Review sets out the economic case for action on climate change. It concludes that the cost of inaction will be far higher than tackling climate change now and that all governments should work together to stop climate change.
UK emissions are about 2% of the global total so domestic action alone will not tackle the problem. If emissions from all UK fossil fuel burning stopped tomorrow, in less than 13 months the growth in emissions from China would have cancelled the effect.
But we have made progress. The UK is on course to reduce emissions by double the Kyoto treaty targets. We’re progressing towards our voluntary domestic target to cut emissions by 20%. The Climate Change Levy has saved 28 million tonnes of carbon and will save 7 million tonnes per year by 2010 – a quarter of our cuts in emissions. Since 1997, the economy has grown by 25% but emissions have fallen by 7%.
We are now legislating to enshrine the Government’s commitments in law. The Climate Change Bill will lay down the aim of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 60% by 2050. It will establish an independent body, the Carbon Committee, to work with Government to reduce emissions, create enabling powers to put in place new emissions reductions measures and strengthen monitoring and reporting arrangements on progress in reducing emissions.
Creating the right framework is important. However, the setting of targets do not in themselves reduce emissions and have no meaning without policies and means to deliver them. This is why I set out in the Energy Review this summer the need for a five-fold increase in the amount of electricity we get from renewable sources. And we need to use energy more efficiently too throughout our economy and in our homes. The measures we proposed in this Review could save 19-25 million tonnes of CO2.
We’ve set ambitious policies to reduce domestic emissions. Early action will be more cost effective than drastic, late action and if the UK demonstrates its commitment to climate change by actions not words, we can change the terms of debate and persuade other countries to follow suit. Building a low-carbon economy will provide the opportunity for new jobs and wealth by expanding the UK’s environmental industries. By 2010 the global environmental market could be worth almost 0 billion - I want Britain to lead the development of this market.
