Climate Change Act 2008 (International Aviation and International Shipping) Regulations 2026

Lord Deben Excerpts

Monday 29th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Deben (Con)]

My Lords, I remind the House of my declared interests and the fact that I was for 11 years chairman of the Climate Change Committee, appointed, reappointed and extended by Conservative-led Governments.

What is being proposed today was presented by the Conservative Government. My noble friend who spoke here supported that with me. I heard nothing explaining what has suddenly changed. This is just like last week. The Opposition are constantly putting forward these things without explaining why they have changed their view from what was the concerted view of every Conservative Government going back to the speeches that I used to write with Lady Thatcher.

Let us realise that this was a Conservative proposition and that the Climate Change Committee proposed it because it is a necessary way of explaining what will happen once we get the methodology right. Of course, we have to get the methodology right with the IMO and the international aviation authority. That is a perfectly reasonable way to do this. Had a Conservative Government been doing this a few years ago, they would have done exactly the same thing. There is no need for us to argue about it.

This is 10% of our emissions. It is not acceptable to come to this House objecting to what the Government are doing without an alternative. If you are not going to do this, you have to say that you will do something else. I exclude the noble Lord, Lord Moynihan of Chelsea, from this, because he has never believed that climate change is something that you need to fight. That is his position. He is entirely wrong, although we will listen to him, but he is not blameworthy. I think the Opposition are blameworthy, as they are coming forward without an alternative for what we need to do.

The reality is that this could become the largest-emitting sector if it is left out. It is stupid to leave it out. You need to have it in and help the industry get through and make its proper contribution. You cannot ask agriculture or manufacturing to make their contribution if you are not asking the aviation and shipping industries to do so. Only last week, the noble Lord, Lord Moynihan, was complaining that he thought we were sending emissions abroad and shipping them here. This is one of the things we have to get right to meet the proper complaint that he made.

I have to say to my noble friend that, if this is an economic wrecking ball, it was one created by the Conservative Party. This is what we did—and thank goodness we did, because it is not an economic wrecking ball. It is a means of enabling this country to play its proper part in ensuring that our children and grandchildren have an economic system of any kind. This general comment about how difficult things are ignores the fact that we are facing an existential danger. Thank goodness that the voices who speak out on that side, including the Pope with Laudato Si’, and all those who really bother about the future of our society and our children, are making it very clear that we have to make these changes.

This is a very modest thing for the Minister to have brought forward. I have real complaints about the Government not moving quickly enough, but I am very pleased that they have moved as quickly as they have. It is not acceptable to argue about these issues unless you have an alternative, particularly when what is being proposed is something you yourself put forward.