First Report of the Committee on Climate Change

24 November 2009

The UK's Committee on Climate Change, established under the Climate Change Act 2008, has published its first report to Parliament setting out its views on the progress that has been made towards achieving the UK's target of a 34% reduction in CO2 (of 1990 levels) by 2020. The headline warning made by the report is that the UK must double the rate of its greenhouse gas reduction if it is to meet the ambitious target. 

The UK is currently 18% below 1990 CO2 levels and is reducing emissions at a rate of 1.7% a year. Lord Turner, Chairman of the Committee, admits that although the UK is making progress, significant further reductions must also be made in the power, residential and transport sectors, as well as reductions being made in other greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxides. 

The report also acknowledges that investment in the low-carbon generation sector has been adversely affected by the current economic climate, and urges Government to establish market arrangements that will facilitate investment in the sector in the future. Government is also encouraged to make a very clear policy signal that power generation by coal plants (without CCS technology) will have a very limited role to play in the UK after 2020.