UK to miss its climate change goals without ‘credible’ policies

As the Climate Change Committee (CCC) releases its latest report on the UK’s climate change goals, stating that the UK will miss its climate change goals without new “credible” policies by 2024, modular developers have called for an urgent focus on sustainable housing.

The Government has made historic climate promises in the past year, for which it deserves credit. However, it has been too slow to follow these with delivery, the committee has said.

This defining year for the UK’s climate credentials has been marred by uncertainty and delay to a host of new climate strategies. Those that have emerged have too often missed the mark. With every month of inaction, it is harder for the UK to get on track.

The Prime Minister’s Ten-Point Plan was an important statement of ambition, but it has yet to be backed with firm policies. The public has not been informed or engaged in the changes that must lie ahead. There is still a window to make comprehensive plans and demonstrate leadership at home and to a global audience, but the Government is taking a high-stakes gamble to focus everything on a new Net Zero Strategy in the autumn to achieve that.

Andrew Shepherd, managing director at TopHat Solutions, said: “The CCC’s prediction that the UK will miss climate change goals without new “credible” policies by 2024 isn’t surprising at all.

“There is an urgent need for a larger focus on sustainable housing if the government is going to reach its climategoals. Further encouragement for the need of energy-efficient housing is certainly needed if the UK’s housebuilding sector wants to thrive in terms of sustainability.

“We need to be building energy-efficient, sustainable homes today rather than kicking the can further down the road. The housebuilding sector can help the government achieve its ambitious targets by delivering energy-efficient homes that do more good for the environment than harm.

“The built environment in the UK, which accounts for 40% of the UK’s carbon footprint, needs to continue to focus on new innovative methods for house building to help the government achieve its climate goals.”

It is absolutely critical that the new strategy is published before the COP26 climate summit, with clear policy plans, backed fully by the Treasury. It must be accompanied by a commitment to prepare the country for the serious climate risks facing the UK, as the next cycle of adaptation planning begins, the committee said.

In two progress reports, the committee offers its appraisal of progress on the twin climate challenges: cutting emissions to Net Zero and adapting to the climate risks facing the UK.

Lord Deben, Chairman of the Climate Change Committee said: “We are in the decisive decade for tackling climate change. The Government must get real on delivery. Global Britain has to prove that it can lead a global change in how we treat our planet. Get it right and UK action will echo widely. Continue to be slow and timid and the opportunity will slip from our hands. Between now and COP 26 the world will look for delivery, not promises.”

Baroness Brown, Chair of the Adaptation Committee added: “The UK is leading in diagnosis but lagging in policy and action. This cannot be put off further. We cannot deliver Net Zero without serious action on adaptation. We need action now, followed by a National Adaptation Programme that must be more ambitious; more comprehensive; and better focussed on implementation than its predecessors, to improve national resilience to climate change.”

Progress on Net Zero

Despite UK emissions falling to nearly 50% of their 1990 levels during the 2020 lockdown, the journey to Net Zero is far from half completed. Emissions next year are expected to rebound. And so far, lasting progress in reducing emissions has been narrowly based. The relative success of decarbonising electricity must continue, but it must be matched with solid commitments to decarbonise buildings, transport, industry and agriculture.

• Sustained reductions in emissions require sustained Government leadership, underpinned by a strong Net Zero Strategy:
• A Net Zero Test would ensure that all Government policy, including planning decisions, is compatible with UK climate targets.
• An ambitious Heat and Buildings Strategy, that works for consumers, is urgently needed.
• Delayed plans on surface transport, aviation, hydrogen, biomass and food must be delivered.
• Plans for the power sector, industrial decarbonisation, the North Sea, peat and energy from waste must be strengthened.
• The big cross-cutting challenges of public engagement, fair funding and local delivery must be tackled.

Chris Bone, CEO of Modulous, said: “The twin emergencies that confront us in housing and climate cannot be solved separately. On the contrary, the Climate Change Committee’s annual report underscores the urgency of adopting hybrid approaches that shift gear from mitigation to adaptation.

“This means a comprehensive review of construction as a traditionally carbon-intensive industry and the role emerging technologies can play in delivering affordable homes faster and more sustainably. An overhaul of old practices in favour of net-zero enabled solutions is the next logical step if we’re going to get serious with tackling both of these crises.”