At the meeting this week of heads of government of the Commonwealth, government minister Claire Perry made the surprise announcement that she would ask the Committee on Climate Change, the government’s statutory advisers on climate change, to consider ways the UK could become “net zero-carbon” by 2050. To reduce them to net zero by the same date, with only three decades to go, is a big step up. Emma Pinchbeck, executive director of trade body Renewable UK, said: “It is in the UK’s best interests for ministers to be ambitious on climate change action. As well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the UK could meet its carbon targets by increasing the absorption of carbon dioxide. If all these developments are not enough, ministers may also seek refuge in an often overlooked part of climate change policy.

Source: The Guardian April 20, 2018 16:25 UTC