Rishi Sunak has “set us back” on climate change and left the UK at risk of falling behind other countries, the head of a government watchdog has said.
Chris Stark, head of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), told the BBC the prime minister had “clearly not” prioritised the issue as much as his predecessors.
He accused Mr Sunak of sending the world a message that the UK is now “less ambitious” than it once was.
A government spokesperson said: “Our record on net zero speaks for itself.”
Mr Stark said the country had made enormous progress towards reaching the climate target of net zero by 2050 under Theresa May and Boris Johnson.
But Mr Sunak’s Downing Street had sent a message to the rest of the world that “the UK is less ambitious on climate than it once was, and that is extremely hard to recover”.
Reaching net zero means no longer adding to the total amount of greenhouse gases – such as carbon dioxide and methane – in the atmosphere. The government is bound to this target by law.
The CCC is a statutory body that gives independent advice to ministers and assesses progress on targets.
A government spokesperson told the BBC: “We are the first major economy to halve greenhouse gas emissions since 1990 and have set into law one of the most ambitious 2035 climate change targets of any major economy,” referring to the target to cut emissions from manufacturing by about two-thirds by 2035.
“But we need to reach our net zero goals in a sustainable way, so we have taken action to protect our energy security, ease the burdens on hard-working people and provide transparency about the choices involved so that we bring people with us in meeting our climate targets.”
In the autumn, Mr Sunak delayed a ban on new petrol and diesel cars, and weakened targets on phasing out gas boilers, as part of a major shift in green policy.
“I think it’s set us back,” Mr Stark said.
“So I think we have moved from a position where we were really at the forefront, pushing ahead as quickly as we could on something that I believe to be fundamental to the UK economy, fundamentally beneficial to the people living in this country, whether you care about the climate or not.”
He said the UK had been successful in “decarbonising how we generate electricity, especially by closing coal-fired powerplants”.
But to get to net zero, more needs to be done on “how we heat homes, or how we deal with the industrial emissions that we have in this country, what we do with farming [and] transport systems”.
“It’s in those other areas that we see the gap,” he said.
“I definitely feel we’re at risk.”
The full interview with Mr Stark will be broadcast tomorrow on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg
Mr Stark also said it was “desperately disappointing” that the SNP government in Edinburgh had ditched one of its climate targets this week. But he said the targets had been “over-ambitious” from the start.
“I love ambition, but it only matters if you actually deliver against that,” he said.
“Now what we’ve seen in this week is desperately disappointing from the Scots, they’ve pulled away essentially the target framework, almost in its entirety, leaving the net zero target, but removing the targets for 2030 and 2040.
“And the reason they’ve done that is because the 2030 target was over-ambitious.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson told the BBC: “Scotland’s 2045 net zero target is not changing.
“The proposed new bill will retain our legal commitment to 2045 alongside annual reporting on progress, while introducing a target approach based on five-yearly carbon budgets – an approach utilised in both the UK and Wales, and which aligns with the nuanced and practical approaches to reducing emissions advocated by the Climate Change Committee.
“Our legal commitment to reach net zero by 2045 steadfastly remains, and with emissions in Scotland already nearly cut in half, we are well positioned to continue leading on climate action that is fair, ambitious and capable of rising to the emergency before us.”
Mr Stark, who is standing down from his job, called on Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer to be more “bold” when it comes to climate change.
“You regularly hear Ed Miliband [the shadow net zero secretary] talk about the transition, of course, on the Labour side, but Keir Starmer, of course, doesn’t talk about it quite so much,” he said.
A Labour party spokesperson said the party’s “number one mission is growing the economy to boost living standards for everyone, everywhere”.
“Keir Starmer has repeatedly spoken about how decarbonising our economy is one of the many ways we will achieve this. With Keir Starmer’s leadership, Labour is offering the most significant investment in clean, homegrown energy in British history and providing global leadership in tackling the climate crisis.”
Mr Stark said politicians in the UK across the spectrum have a “collective fear” of talking about climate change.
“You look out your window and you see we’ve had, you know, the wettest 18 months ever in this country, we’ve got the hottest year on record in the last 12 months.
“I think people around the world know climate change is happening, but there is definitely a fear of talking about it in British politics at the moment.”
He cautioned against leaving a “vacuum” where climate change denial could creep in.
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Kuenssberg: Sunak senses political opportunity
There is no question that Rishi Sunak has pulled back from Boris Johnson’s enthusiasm for the push to net zero. His shift seems, in part, down to a genuine difference in view about the urgency of moving to a green economy and the costs for consumers and business.
But the Conservatives also sniffed a political opportunity, particularly after the Uxbridge by-election, where they held on after campaigning against extending a low-emission zone for drivers. Slowing down the move to a green economy, and delaying the price tag for consumers, was a way of trying to grab political support.
Despite the victory in Uxbridge back in the autumn, the new approach on climate has hardly done the Tories many favours – if you believe the polls. But what was a consensus on moving to net zero is strained.
It’s been harder for politicians who are committed to tackling climate change to make the case when many families are struggling to make ends meet, even though many argue that investing in green technology is a way to help create jobs and wealth.
Reform UK, the party that’s chasing disaffected voters, is campaigning hard on scrapping the net zero target.
And there is a genuine difference between the two big parties on how we produce our energy, how fast we move to a greener economy, and how the UK manages the huge shift that most countries are undertaking. It’s a gap that both the Tories and Labour will try to use to their advantage between now and the election.
Chris Stark has plenty more to say on climate protests, “faceless quangos”, and what he reckons is at risk. We’ll be talking to the Climate Secretary Claire Coutinho in the studio tomorrow.
The full interview with Mr Stark will be broadcast tomorrow on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg.
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Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
