MPs call for new approach to deliver net zero

A Net Zero Delivery Authority is needed to provide the leadership in England to achieve zero carbon emissions. Achieving the UK’s low-carbon targets needs clear and strong delivery leadership, learning from the UK’s past successes such as the London Olympics, says the cross-party Parliamentary think tank Policy Connect in its new report, Connecting the Watts.

The authority would ensure delivery on the strategies, acting as the lynchpin in a whole-system, coordinated approach and established in statute so that it has the autonomy to make the necessary implementation decisions. It would need to work with the UK’s nations and regions.

The report also calls for:
• Every government department to publicly sign up to apply a net-zero test to its individual strategies and policies, and be held to account
• Local government and its partners to be empowered to plan the transition, and resourced to make it happen, street by street
• The government to establish a network of independent consumer information hubs to provide information about net zero, consumer protection and to offer tailored advice.

Report co-chair Darren Jones MP, chair of the BEIS Select Committee, says: “Parliament must consider which pathways will help us to reach our legally binding net-zero targets and achieve a just transition. The government must not waste the momentum that we’ve gained from COP26.”

Report co-chair Wera Hobhouse MP says: “A coordinated response involving local people is vital for the UK to reach net zero. My constituents have many questions about reaching net zero and how this might impact their lives, and this report sets out an impressive approach that connects local people to policymakers as the UK works towards a zero-carbon future.”

The report was sponsored by Baxi Heating, Eon, Energy & Utilities Alliance, IGEM and Worcester Bosch.