‘Deeply worrying’: fears for UK’s net zero goal under new Tory leader

theguardian.com:

When it comes to the future of the planet, the Tory leadership contest has got off to a dismal start.

Rows erupted over the government’s flagship climate policy – the target of reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 – almost as soon as Boris Johnson sagged back into No 10 after his resignation speech.

Several leadership candidates have now cast doubt on the net zero target, vowed to change it in some way, or taken stances against some of the green policies needed to reach it. Yet the target is vital not just for the UK, but for the world at a crucial time.

Tackling the climate crisis was linked to tackling the cost of living crisis, as cutting emissions meant ending reliance on volatile fossil fuels, said Tom Burke, a veteran government adviser and co-founder of the E3G green thinktank. “They are closely linked. High gas prices are the problem; insulation is the quickest way to bring down bills,” he said.

The UK also risked missing out on economic opportunities, warned Nick Molho, of the Aldersgate Group, representing businesses with an interest in net zero. “This is about investment in industries, like steel, cement, chemicals, that will go elsewhere, go to competing countries, if it doesn’t come here,” he said.

Turning away from climate action would have global repercussions, as the UK currently holds the leadership of the UN climate talks, until Egypt takes over this November. Lord Adair Turner, a former chair of the committee on climate change and of the CBI employers’ organisation, who now chairs the Energy Transitions Commission, said: “It would be a catastrophic loss of international credibility, gained at Cop26 [climate summit] in Glasgow, to move away from our commitment to net zero. If the UK were to