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The UK will miss its new goal to cut carbon emission to “net zero” by 2050 unless it takes “urgent” action to change consumer behaviour, such as regulation to make green sources of energy cheaper and a tax on frequent flyers, according to the first assessment of the target for the government’s environmental advisory body.
The report, commissioned by the UK’s influential Committee on Climate Change, warned little had been done to tackle household consumption, which accounts for nearly three-quarters of global greenhouse gases. It pointed out that the 40 per cent reduction in emissions by the UK since 1990 was largely as a result of the decarbonisation of the electricity supply.
Researchers at Imperial College London, who wrote the report, called on the government to engage with the public and push through ambitious policy measures to force behavioural changes.
Proposed measures include intervention to cut the cost of low-carbon electricity which is currently more expensive than that generated by fossil fuels.
It called for a reduction on VAT charged on hybrid heat pumps, which switch between energy sources depending on which is the most efficient at a given time. It recommended an extension of the renewable heat incentive scheme, which rewards consumers with cash payments for installing renewable heating technology over seven years, beyond 2021.
The report also urged the government to introduce an “air miles levy” to discourage “excessive flying” by the 15 per cent of the UK population estimated to be responsible for 70 per cent of flights. Frequent flyer reward schemes should be banned, and the tax should “factor in the much larger emissions for business and first class tickets”.
The UK adopted one of the toughest climate change targets in June when it committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 — the deadline the United Nations has said must be met to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Centigrade above pre-industrial levels. Warming of more than 2C would unleash catastrophic and irreversible knock on effects, the UN has warned.
But the report warned that the UK was “not on course” to even meet its legally binding targets of reducing emissions by 51 per cent by 2025 and by 57 per cent by 2030. “Rising to the challenge of net zero scenarios will require major progress in all sectors and for behavioural shifts to play a much greater role.”
Other recommendations included financial incentives to encourage drivers and local authorities to switch to electric vehicles and state funding to build the necessary charging infrastructure.
The report also recommended requiring all public sector catering menus to include at least one vegan option every day, and that the government fund training in “plant-based cooking”. It should also invest in the development of plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, which the report said could generate a “new protein economy”.
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