The Environmental Audit Committee has urged the Government to
hold the aviation industry accountable for its proposed
emissions reductions, as it publishes the Government's response
to its report on net
zero aviation.
The Government's plans for delivering net zero aviation are set
out in the Jet Zero Strategy, published in 2022. In this plan,
the Government expects technological measures, like increasing
fuel efficiency and the adoption of sustainable aviation fuels,
to reduce emissions significantly each year.
To maintain this ambition, in its report the Committee called on
the Government rigorously to monitor the industry's progress, and
to reassess its approach if system efficiencies alone fail to
meet the 2050 net zero trajectory. Committee members called for
the first review of the Jet Zero Strategy to be brought forward
from 2027 to 2025 to determine whether the sector remains on
track.
In response, the Government confirms that its model assumes that
fuel efficiencies will improve by 2% each year, in line with
evidence from the aviation sector. But it says it will keep these
assumptions under review and consider whether further action is
needed in future to meet net zero targets. For example, it does
not rule out measures designed to reduce demand for flights, like
a frequent flyer levy, if a future review suggests that new fuels
and improved technology alone are not sufficiently reducing
emissions. In its report the Committee had warned Ministers that
demand management measures might need to be considered if reviews
of the strategy show that it is not on track to deliver the
emissions reductions expected.
In its original report, the Committee welcomed the Government's
decision to include international aviation emissions in the UK's
carbon budgets from the Sixth Carbon Budget onwards. This will
oblige the Government to take into account the UK's share of
global aviation emissions when preparing to meet that budget,
which covers the period 2033 to 2037. But the Committee also
noted in its report that this had not yet come into force, and
recommended the Government bring forward legislation for the
change “without further delay”. In its response, the Government
says it will legislate to include international aviation
emissions in the Sixth Carbon Budget “at the earliest
opportunity, subject to Parliamentary scheduling”, but does not
commit to doing so by a specific date.
Elsewhere in its response, the Government agrees with the
Committee's recommendation to commission research into aviation's
non-CO2 emissions. It points to a multi-year research programme,
launched last year, which it says will improve the Government's
understanding of how non-CO2 emissions interact over time, and
how their impacts can be mitigated. Understanding the climate
impact of hydrogen-powered aircraft will be a key focus of the
programme, it adds.
Environmental Audit Committee member, Jerome Mayhew MP, said:
“Decarbonising the aviation industry has proved difficult; but it
is a critical part of the UK's pathway to net zero.
“There is considerable energy and ambition within the aviation
sector to deliver the necessary reductions in emissions. I
welcome this ambition but the Government needs to make sure that
ambition is translated into actual results.
“If a future review of the Jet Zero Strategy – which the
Committee recommended takes place by 2025 – reveals that
sufficient progress is not being made, the Government must not be
afraid to alter course mid-flight to maintain progress towards
our net zero goals.”
