Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to limit the UK’s CO2 emissions to its proportionate share of the remaining global carbon budget for 1.5°C.

The latest assessments by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Energy Agency (IEA) show that the pathway to 1.5°C remains open, but only if urgent action is taken. The UK is a global leader in the fight against climate change, which is why at COP29, the Prime Minister announced the UK’s 1.5°C aligned 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), to reduce economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by at least 81% by 2035, compared to 1990 levels. This target is estimated to reduce emissions by more than 60% between 2019 and 2035, aligning with the reductions in the IPCC’s global pathways which limit warming to 1.5°C with low or no overshoot. The UK’s commitment to reaching net zero emissions by 2050 is also consistent with these pathways, as confirmed by the UK’s Climate Change Committee in advice provided in June 2019 and December 2020.