Climate change action in 2020 – CBI Director General

Climate change action in 2020 – CBI Director General

The CBI Director- General, Carolyn Fairbairn, has called for urgent action needed from the government in order to unlock business investment in clean growth.

Calling for all political parties to agree and implement a long-term national plan to combat climate change, in a speech delivered at Schroders, Carolyn will outline three key actions firms need from the Government to unlock business investment to reach the UK’s target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Carolyn will also call on the Government to promote renewable and nuclear energy, set out plans to make transport and heating networks green, and include consumption emission rates (i.e. the emissions created by products imported into the UK from overseas, like phones and TVs) in the UK’s greenhouse gas emission figures.

On business and the Government working to tackle climate change, Carolyn will say:

“To tackle the climate emergency in the time we have, we need to go faster, and further, than ever before. The next ten years will be crucial. With the tech advancing so rapidly and costs falling, the goal of a net-zero future is achievable.

“But the truth is that nobody has done anything like this, on this scale before. Business can’t do it alone. It must be done in partnership with government every step of the way.

It needs a tangible vision, and measurable plan to work to, and with.

“So, today, the CBI is launching our new report, The Low Carbon 2020s – a Decade of Delivery.  It sets out the actions our members see as essential to the UK’s low-carbon success in the next ten years.”

On making 2020 a year of action, Carolyn will say:

“We are asking the Government to turn 2020 into a year of action.

“We have the deadline of the UN COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow next November. So, let’s use it to kick-start the UK’s net-zero plans and see how much we can achieve in the next 12 months.

“It could be our climate change Olympics, reinforcing the UK’s position as a global climate leader, as well as showing the public at home, and wider world, the scale and reach of UK low-carbon innovation and expertise.”

On political risks to tackling climate change, Carolyn will say:

“In the heat of this election campaign and beyond it’s vital we recognise that the UK’s success in cutting emissions over the last thirty years has been only possible because of cross-party support.

“No matter what happens in this election, we need the next Government to ensure that this hard-won and indispensable political consensus on low-carbon holds.

“Political debate may continue about targets and years, but it’s clear on all sides that the time for action is now. The next Government needs to bring forward a realistic, long-term national plan, that secures cross-party agreement from all parties to deliver it.

“Central to that is avoiding distractions or shocks that could derail the plan. It means an end to the chopping and changing of incentives and the rules of the game. And it especially means avoiding the roadblock to progress that mass renationalisation of our energy networks would bring.

“We can secure the UK’s global leadership in a low-carbon, post-Brexit world. And most importantly, we can generate clean, sustainable growth for generations to come.”

For further information visit the CBI website

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