In relation to strengthening the Bill, the committee has recommended that t
here should be no mechanism for lowering the proposed 60% CO2 reduction target for 2050 and calls for measures to be taken so it is possible to easily increase this target.
To this end, it calls on the Committee on Climate Change to review the 60% figure “as soon as possible after it is established” to see whether deeper cuts are required. Furthermore, there is a call to remove the upper target limit contained in the Bill for the 2020 target.
In order to strengthen UK compliance with the Bill, the joint committee has recommended that parliamentary accountability should be placed on the Prime Minister, rather than the Secretary of State, as currently set out in the draft Bill.
The committee has accepted the case for a five-year budgetary period which environmental groups have argued against (EEF supported in its written evidence), but only with the provision of a “strong system of annual reporting” and “indicative annual milestones”.
Similarly the report does not seek to change the reduction measurement away from CO2 to include other greenhouse gases, but would like to see “close monitoring and reporting of other greenhouse gases”. The report recommends limiting the use of overseas credits to meet climate targets, rather it wants to see the savings made within the UK.
The funding and membership of the Committee on Climate Change is seen as crucial to its ability to advise the government on a range of issues, stating “It is vital that the Committee is not weakened by inadequate resourcing, or lack of credibility” and “it is hard to imagine any non-Parliamentary body, other than the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England, whose role has the potential for greater impact on individuals, their families, and society as a whole”.
The report has recognised the importance of addressing climate adaptation and the role the Bill can play in “provide a framework for other countries to commit themselves to substantial reductions in carbon emissions”.