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

To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will set a long-term carbon pricing signal to support the removal of carbon emissions from the atmosphere in the UK.

On the 1st of January 2021, the Government implemented the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) that will be the world’s first net zero carbon cap and trade market. We will consult in due course on how to align the UK ETS cap with an appropriate net zero trajectory, meaning the system will significantly contribute to ensuring the UK meets our commitment to net zero emissions by 2050. The operation of the cap will provide certainty about the decarbonisation trajectory over the long term.

The initial scope of the UK ETS provides continuity with the EU system we have now left, covering emissions from energy intensive industry, aviation and electricity generation. In the Energy White Paper, we committed to exploring expanding the UK ETS to other sectors and will set out our aspirations to continue to lead the world on carbon pricing in the run-up to COP26. This will also include how the UK ETS could incentivise the deployment of greenhouse gas removal technologies.