The Climate Change Committee [CCC] has warned that the UK must raise its game to achieve its targets for reducing carbon emissions, urging it and other countries to show more ambition in its policies.
The committee indicated that according to current progress, global temperatures could rise by as much as 2.7 Celsius by the year 2100.
Advisers say that tougher policy and an international effort to slash emissions could keep global temperature increases to below 2 Celsius.
Climate Change Committee chief executive, Chris Stark, suggested that instead of setting more aggressive goals, policy action needed to hasten progress toward existing targets to set an example to other countries.
Stark said: “The government is nowhere near achieving current targets. If it sets tougher targets, that will simply widen the gap between ambition and delivery. What we really need is to strengthen delivery - and show the world that it can be done.”
In a list of options to help the government steer successfully toward its goal to slash carbon output by 78 per cent by 2035, the committee suggested that the government phases out its fossil fuel subsidies, which currently stand at £12.5 billion per year.
However, the government has been reluctant to implement policies that could have a knock-on effect for cost of living, with such a move likely to lead to tax policy reform which would bring price hikes for fuel, gas and the aviation industry.
Another recommendation was to bring down so-called embodied emissions coming in the form of imported goods manufactured in a carbon heavy way. This is particularly applicable for construction materials such as cement and steel. One policy suggestion in this area included the imposing of a tax on any carbon-intensive goods entering the country.
The committee also indicated that ministers could do more by bringing in harder policy to cut down on emissions from agriculture, and simply by encouraging individuals to make more eco-friendly choices in their day to day lives.
The CCC also called on the Treasury to initiate a review of the role of the tax system in delivering net zero, something which was not included in a Treasury assessment published alongside the government's strategy to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
