Committee hails reduction in emissions but calls for more action to decarbonise UK
The Climate Change Committee (CCC) has released its first assessment of the new UK government’s progress on reducing emissions. The independent, statutory body found that government policies to reduce emissions have improved since last year.
With more action, the UK can hit its legally binding climate targets and improve energy security for households and businesses across the country, the CCC said.
The CCC’s interim chair Piers Forster (pictured) said: “The UK can be proud of our progress in reducing emissions.
“We’ve cut them by over 50% since 1990. Our country is among a leading group of economies demonstrating a commitment to decarbonise society. This is to be celebrated: delivering deep emissions reduction is the only way to slow global warming.
“However, the government needs to do more to ensure people see the benefits of climate action in their bills.
“Given increasingly unstable geopolitics, it is also important to get off unreliable fossil fuels and onto homegrown, renewable energy as quickly as possible. The fossil fuel era is over – cheap, clean electricity is our future.”
The committee said making electricity cheaper will help people feel the benefits of the transition and speed up the uptake of clean electric technologies.
The report highlights policy decisions made by the government this year – notably on removing planning barriers on renewable deployment, clarity on the clean power mission, and the reinstatement of the 2030 phase-out date for new petrol and diesel vehicles.
Over the last year, the UK has made progress on reducing emissions, the report said. Emissions fell 2.5% in 2024, the tenth consecutive year of sustained reduction in emissions, excluding the Covid pandemic years 2020 and 2021.
Trevor Hutchings, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association, said: “Climate changing emissions have halved since 1990 and over 50% of our electricity is now from clean sources. Electric vehicle sales are up a fifth and heat pump installations have grown by over a third year on year – net zero is within our grasp.
“But this important report reminds us that we are still far from job done. As we electrify, we must further incentivise the production of clean, renewable energy to meet the new demand; we must address gaps in policy coverage; and we must ensure consumers quickly feel the full ‘net zero dividend’ through lower electricity bills.”
