UK Policy

The UK Government believes that climate change is the greatest long-term challenge facing the world today and has taken a strong leadership role to secure action at a domestic and international level.

Government was key in negotiating the Kyoto Protocol and agreed to reduce its CO₂ emissions by 12.5% for the first Kyoto commitment period between 2008-2012. It also set a domestic ambition in the 2003 Energy White Paper of reducing carbon emissions by 60% by 2050 and of making significant progress towards that goal by 2020.

In 2005, this leadership role was taken further through the UK’s Presidencies of the G8 and EU where important progress was made. During its G8 Presidency, the UK Government commissioned former chief economist of the World Bank, Sir Nicholas Stern, to conduct an independent review on the the effect of climate change and global warming on the world economy. The resulting Stern Review Report on the Economics of Climate Change was published in October 2006 and concluded that climate change threatens to be the greatest and widest ranging market failure ever seen.

The 2006 UK Climate Change Programme builds on the UK's position leading the world in promoting global action on climate change by setting out policies and priorities for action in the UK and internationally. It also explains how the UK plans to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

In March 2007, Government was party to a groundbreaking deal on EU emissions targets whereby at least 20% of all Europe's energy needs must be from renewable sources by the year 2020. EU nations also agreed to cut harmful carbon dioxide emissions by 20%, from 1990 levels, by the same year.

The Draft Climate Change Bill – the first of its kind in any country – was published in March 2007 for consultation and sets out a legal framework for moving the UK to a low-carbon economy, demonstrating the UK's leadership as progress continues towards establishing a post-2012 global emissions agreement.