Tearfund welcomes Gordon Brown’s hint that the UK is moving closer to 80 per cent cuts in emissions by 2050, however, he has missed an opportunity to show leadership by failing to announce the cuts outright.
In an hour long speech, the Prime Minister announced that the climate change committee should report on the case for an 80 per cent reduction in the UK’s emissions by October instead of December.
This means there is a chance that the 80 per cent target will be included in the Climate Change Bill at the end of this year.
This latest news has now publicly raised the expectations that the target in the Bill will reflect what the scientific consensus has been saying all along.
This will allow the government to take a lead on climate change, one of the most important global issues of our time.
However, Tearfund are concerned that current plans to develop new coal-fired power plants are incompatible with today’s announcement and any key decisions around the UK’s energy infrastructure should support and not undermine the 80 per cent target.
Tearfund Director of Advocacy Paul Cook said, `We hope that this announcement translates into concrete measures ensuring the 80 per cent target becomes a reality and does not end up on the scrapheap of good ideas.'