UK shows international leadership in tackling climate crisis

Tackling the climate crisis is essential to our national energy security, economic growth, and our efforts to protect current and future generations, the UK government said as it unveils the UK's new climate goals at the COP29 Summit in Baku, Azerbaijan today.  

Today's announcement will strengthen the UK's position as a place for investment in the technologies and jobs that are driving growth across the world.   

There are 640,000 green jobs in the UK, growing at a rate 4 times faster than overall UK employment.

To support the industry the government has announced a significant investment programme in homegrown British energy – including renewables, carbon capture and storage, nuclear and hydrogen.  

The UK's reliance on fossil fuels has also been felt by every family and business in the last few years with the worst cost of living crisis in memory, driven by energy price spikes from international gas markets. 

That's why the government's mission is to tackle the climate crisis in a way that makes the British people better off by investing in clean homegrown power and unlocking thousands of jobs, having already seen £34.8 billion of private investment into the UK's clean energy industries since July.   

This ambitious and pragmatic new target supports the UK's mission for growth, helping to attract further investment and jobs in low carbon technologies such as solar and wind, electric vehicles and batteries.   

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:  

The only way to protect current generations is by making Britain a clean energy superpower, and the only way to protect future generations is by tackling the climate crisis.   

Britain is back in the business of climate leadership, with an ambitious new target that will protect our environment, deliver energy security and restore our global climate reputation.  

We will cut emissions across the country, delivering for our environment and ending our exposure to spiking fossil fuel markets.

This ambitious and pragmatic new target – in line with the recommendation from the Climate Change Committee and previously legislated and legally-binding Carbon Budgets for the same period.

The target forms what is called the UK's Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC): commitments that countries make to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate climate change. It is aligned to 1.5C.

The UK has called for other countries to match the UK's ambition to address the urgency of climate change, following stark warnings from the United Nations that the world is way off track to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C.

Since July the government has:   

• lifted the ban on onshore wind in England
• delivered a record number of clean energy projects through its renewables auction
• consented unprecedented amounts of nationally significant solar – 2GW – more than the last 14 years combined
• launched Great British Energy backed by £8.3 billion to speed up the deployment of clean technologies 
• fired the starting gun on the UK's carbon capture, usage and storage industry, with funding agreed for 2 clusters in Teesside and the North West

Globally, the costs of renewables continue to fall, with solar and wind now cheaper than existing coal and gas power plants in most of the world.  

Recent analysis from the International Energy Agency found that in 2023 for every $1 spent on fossil fuels, $1.7 was spent on clean energy. Global energy investment is set to be over $3 trillion in 2024, with $2 trillion of this on clean energy technologies and infrastructure.

Notes to editors

The target is in line with the recommendation of the independent Climate Change Committee, and with the UK's share of limiting global warming to 1.5C .

The target is to reduce emissions by at least 81% on 1990 levels.

The target excludes emissions from international aviation and shipping in line with international standards, and is aligned with the UK's sixth carbon budget.

By 2030, to combat climate catastrophe, global emissions need to fall by 43% on 1990 levels (whereas the most optimistic scenario of NDCimplementation implies a reduction of around only 5.9% by 2030), climate finance needs to increase at least fivefold, we need to phase out coal 7 times faster and reduce forest loss 4 times faster.

That is why the UK has set an ambitious target and will be urging other countries to bring forward ambitious, economy-wide Nationally Determined Contributions by the February 2025 deadline to address the urgency of the climate crisis.  

During COP29 in Baku the UK's climate negotiations will be led by Energy Secretary Ed Miliband where he will be encouraging others – particularly major emitters – to submit their own target ahead of the deadline.   

The government will submit the detail underpinning the Nationally Determined Contributions to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ahead of the February 2025 deadline. Steps are already being taken to hit the target through the government's clean power by 2030 mission.

Stakeholder responses

Sir Ian Cheshire, Chair, We Mean Business Coalition said: 

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has today sent a clear signal to the international community that the UK is back as a global leader on climate. This headline figure for cutting the UK's emissions is consistent with the science and what is technologically and economically achievable. 

Companies in the UK and around the world will welcome the clarity and stability that comes with a long-term plan for delivering the shift from fossil fuels to clean energy. Working closely with the private sector, the UK's new climate plans should create jobs, drive investment in British industry and ensure energy security and affordability. 

Rain Newton-Smith, CBI CEO, said:

As the world convenes at COP29 the UK has today demonstrated its international leadership credentials on climate. Setting an ambitious 2035 NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution) target to reduce emissions by 81% is a steadfast commitment to transitioning the UK to a net zero economy, capitalising on its strengths in climate finance, institutions, and policy design that can deliver a blueprint for other countries to build on.

Walking the walk requires a laser focus on delivery and the UK's business community stands ready to play its part. In a world where the growth and resilience of our economies continues to be adversely tested by the impacts of energy shocks and climate events, there has never been a more opportune time for businesses and governments to work in partnership to scale up investment in climate action and develop markets in decarbonisation technologies.

Rachel Solomon Williams, Executive Director at the Aldersgate Group, said:

This ambitious NDC is a welcome display of global leadership from the UK government. Alongside sector-specific goals such as 2030 clean power, it will significantly strengthen our standing on the world stage at a time when international climate leadership is urgently needed. The UK has already demonstrated that ambitious climate targets can spark the creation of thriving new industries and accelerate growth, and this new target shows other nations that we have confidence in this approach and will lead by example in our domestic policy.