Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Callanan on 2 February (HL12282), what year they estimate net zero could be achieved by spending one per cent of the UK’s GDP.

In June 2019, following advice from the Climate Change Committee (CCC), the UK Government became the first major economy to set a legally binding target to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. When publishing their recommendation for the level of the Sixth Carbon Budget in December 2020, the CCC made clear that Net Zero in 2050 remains the right target for the UK.

Ahead of COP26, we will set out ambitious plans across key sectors of the economy to meet our carbon budgets and net zero. We have already published the Energy White Paper and the first phase of our Transport Decarbonisation Plan, and will publish the Heat and Building Strategy in due course. We will also publish a comprehensive Net Zero Strategy, setting out the Government’s vision for transitioning to a net zero economy, making the most of new growth and employment opportunities across the UK. These will raise ambition as we outline our path to hit our 2050 target.

We will build on the strong foundations we have established through our leading progress in decarbonising our economy; our ambitious manifesto commitments; and announcements from my Rt. Hon. Friends the Prime Minister and Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer of measures to cut emissions as we build back better in our economic recovery from COVID-19.