Government accepts its “net zero” climate strategy is unlawful and must be redone by March 2023
Jacob Rees-Mogg, Secretary of State at BEIS, has dropped plans to appeal against a High Court ruling that found the government’s plan to reach “net zero” was unlawful. This means the government must now draw up a new net-zero strategy by March 2023, to reach its legally binding target for 2050. The net zero plan had always been too vague, with no details of how the target could be achieved. And it would not provide the necessary cuts by the 2030s. There were various suggestions (eg more nuclear power or more electric cars), but nothing set out the various emissions savings each measure might achieve, or measures to check progress. So in June a legal challenge were brought by ClientEarth, Friends of the Earth and the Good Law Project. The government’s lawyers were unable to provide detail on how targets would be met. Then in July, Mr Justice Holgate ruled that the strategy was unlawful because it failed to meet two obligations in the Climate Change Act 2008 – monitoring of progress, and details of carbon savings. Aviation should be included in the strategy. A report by the Tory MP Chris Skidmore, due by the end of the year, is likely to influence a new strategy.
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Government drops appeal over net-zero High Court ruling
By Adam Vaughan, Environment Editor (The Times)
October 13 2022
Jacob Rees-Mogg has dropped plans to appeal against a High Court ruling that found the government’s plan to reach net zero was unlawful.
The business secretary’s decision means the government must now draw up a new net-zero strategy by March.
Campaigners said that the climbdown was embarrassing but welcome, and urged ministers to flesh out how legally binding carbon targets would be met with more ambitious action.
The existing strategy was hailed by Boris Johnson as the “greatest opportunity for jobs and prosperity” since the industrial revolution. However, the plan did not set out the emissions savings for individual measures, such as backing a new nuclear power station or stimulating the uptake of electric cars.
That led to a legal challenge brought by the civil society groups Friends of the Earth, the Good Law Project and ClientEarth against the government in June. The case revealed that the government would fall short on its mid-2030s carbon targets by ten million tonnes of carbon, and government lawyers were unable to provide extra detail on how targets would be met.
In July, Mr Justice Holgate ruled that the strategy was unlawful because it failed to meet two obligations in the Climate Change Act 2008. One was that ministers did not have enough information to know carbon targets would be met while the other concerned a lack of detail on emissions savings, rendering public scrutiny impossible. The judge imposed a new deadline of the end of March next year for a revised strategy.
The government applied for permission to fight the decision but in a letter seen by The Times, officials said: “We confirm that the new secretary of state has made a decision not to pursue the application [for permission to appeal].”
What a new net-zero strategy will look like remains to be seen but the numbers for emissions reductions will now need to be put on individual policies. The Times understands that the government holds a spreadsheet containing those figures but has repeatedly refused freedom of information requests to release the document.
A report by the Tory MP Chris Skidmore, due by the end of the year, is likely to influence a new strategy.
A government spokesman said: “The net-zero strategy remains policy and has not been quashed.”
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/government-drops-appeal-over-net-zero-high-court-ruling-szrqlpfn2
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Government accepts its flagship climate strategy is unlawful
13.10.2022
We are pleased to announce that the Government has confirmed in a letter to the Court and the parties involved in our case with Friends of the Earth and ClientEarth that it will not pursue an appeal against the High Court ruling that its Net Zero strategy is unlawful.
In a landmark victory in July, the High Court agreed with us that the Government’s strategy failed to show how the UK’s legally binding carbon budgets will be met.
Responding to the news, Jo Maugham, Director of Good Law Project said:
“So the Government has been forced to accept that its flagship climate strategy is unlawful. Another embarrassing climbdown.
“Rather than threatening communities with fracking, Liz Truss and Jacob-Rees Mogg should focus their efforts on improving the strategy so they meet the UK’s legally-binding climate targets and move away from expensive fossil fuels to deliver on affordable energy.
Good Law Project is thrilled to have worked alongside our friends at ClientEarth and Friends of the Earth to deliver this landmark victory.”
Friends of the Earth lawyer, Katie de Kauwe, said:
“The Government’s decision not to appeal is welcome news. Ministers must now focus their energies on the action and detailed policies needed to address the climate emergency and the myriad crises we face…
“The existing strategy is far too weak. The Climate Change Committee warned in June that there are only credible policies to achieve 39% of the emission cuts needed.
“Since then, the Government has announced plans for fracking, new gas and oil developments and more roads which will make it even harder to make its sums add up. The best way to put our climate goals back on track and ensure long-term sustainable growth is to pull the plug on new fossil fuel developments and invest in real solutions to the myriad crises we face: developing the UK’s immense renewable energy potential and insulating people’s homes.
Senior lawyer at ClientEarth, Sam Hunter Jones said:
“Now that the Government has confirmed it won’t be appealing, its efforts must now be directed at publishing a revised Net Zero Strategy that complies with July’s landmark Judgment.
“This new strategy is also an opportunity for the Government to address the spiralling cost of living crisis at the same time as making the required emissions savings. This can be done through a number of measures including a rapid roll-out of home insulation across the country and a swift transition to renewable energy.”
Good Law Project only exists thanks to donations from people across the UK. If you’re in a position to support our work, you can do so here.
You can find out more about our Net Zero victory here.
https://goodlawproject.org/news/nz_update/
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See earlier:
High Court rules UK “net zero by 2050” plan is too vague, with no clear policy pathway
The high court has ordered the UK government to outline exactly how its “net zero” greenhouse gas (GHG) policies will achieve CO2 emissions targets by 2050. Friends of the Earth, ClientEarth and the Good Law Project had made a legal challenge about the government’s vague climate change strategy, as it lacks the necessary policies to achieve its targets. Now Justice David Holgate has ruled that the plan is unlawful, regarding government obligations under the Climate Change Act. The government does not know how various individual policies could contribute to achieving the legally binding climate target, and therefore could not properly assess the plan’s credibility. Judge Holgate said a detailed and quantified explanation of how the policies would achieve net zero GHG emissions by 2050 was important for holding ministers to account and for “transparency”, for everyone to understand. He ordered ministers to publish an updated strategy by the end of March 2023. The Climate Change Committee has aid there was “scant evidence” of delivery against the high-level target, with major policy gaps in key areas – such as aviation.
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