Responding to the Net Zero Review published today [13 Jan], Merlin Hyman, CEO, Regen, commented:
“The publication of the Net Zero Review today should be a pivotal moment. An extensive process commissioned by the government and backed by engagement with people and businesses across the country concludes unambiguously that achieving net zero is a huge opportunity that should now be central plank of the UK’s economic and social policies.
One of the Conservative’s own MPs has bluntly called out the government for setting ambitious net zero goals without sufficient delivery mechanisms. Faced with the evidence in this report it is no longer credible for politicians to present policy tweaks and press headlines as a net zero strategy. This is a call for a ‘gear shift’.
We particularly welcome recommendations on the urgent need to invest in critical energy infrastructure and the electricity grid to unlock the pipeline of shovel-ready clean energy projects, and the emphasis on the role of local organisations in delivering the scale of change required to achieve net zero.
Most crucially, at a time where inequalities in our energy system are laid bare, this report recognises that, with the right policies, the transition to net zero could bring material benefits to people’s lives, with job opportunities, a fair transition for workers in the fossil fuel sector, and lower cost energy.
The scale of the opportunity has been made crystal clear and the time for action is now.”