TAG: Net zero
The UK’s great disappearing energy summit
LONDON — It was billed as the summit that would “rewire the global energy system” — a chance for Bre...
8 months ago
Nuclear power to generate a quarter of electricity under UK plans
The U.K. government wants nuclear power to meet a quarter of electricity demand by 2050, under plans...
8 months ago
Former Tory energy minister quits as MP over Sunak’s ‘harmful’ push for new oil and gas
The former energy minister who signed the U.K.’s 2050 net-zero target into law has quit the Conserva...
8 months ago
Labour will back ‘boiler tax,’ says Miliband
LONDON — The Labour Party will introduce a controversial “boiler tax” if it gets into power at the next election, the shadow energy secretary said on Tuesday.Ed Miliband, speaking at an event in London, said that Labour would “support the Clean Heat Marke...
6 months ago
Net zero meets the NIMBYs: Inside the battle for the UK’s biggest solar farm
EYNSHAM VILLAGE HALL, OXFORDSHIRE, England — On a winter afternoon, dozens of local residents pour into a drafty village hall, tucked away in the picturesque English countryside. They wear thick coats and skeptical frowns, and are here to fight plans to b...
6 months ago
UK government scraps heat pump plan
LONDON — The government has scrapped controversial plans to fine boiler manufacturers if they miss targets for installing heat pumps.The Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM), which was due to start next month, has been “scrapped” until April 2025 in a bid t...
6 months ago
With Theresa May’s exit, UK Conservatives face green leadership vacuum
LONDON — Former Prime Minister Theresa May's announcement that she'll leave Westminster at the election creates a vacancy for a climate leader at the top of the Conservative Party. Nobody is in a rush to apply.The Tories have had a rocky relationship with...
6 months ago
‘Postcode lottery’ warning as UK energy chief weighs bills shake-up
LONDON — Claire Coutinho has promised to cut your energy bills. But she could end up hiking your neighbor’s in the process.The U.K. energy secretary is mulling sweeping reforms to the electricity market which, advocates say, could reduce bills by billions...
6 months ago
Claire Coutinho: The UK’s chancellor-in-the-wings?
LONDON — Late summer 2023. Claire Coutinho, a junior minister at the Department for Education and a rising star in the U.K. Conservative government, is enjoying a quiet morning at home when her phone rings.The caller has a message from one of Coutinho’s o...
6 months ago
Wanted: Someone, anyone to sell climate policies to UK voters
LONDON — Rishi Sunak needs all the help he can get selling his green vision to the British public.The U.K. prime minister reckons Britain can hit its headline climate goal — net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 — in a way which “brings people with us.” That’...
6 months ago
UK to quit energy treaty that ‘penalizes’ net zero
LONDON — The U.K. will leave an “outdated” international energy treaty after ministers concluded it could stymie efforts to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.Energy Minister Graham Stuart will confirm on Thursday that the U.K. is following several...
6 months ago
UK vows to avoid Europe’s ‘clumsy’ green policies as protests rage
LONDON — Britain will not repeat the kind of “clumsy” climate policies which have caused social unrest elsewhere in Europe, the country’s energy secretary declared.Claire Coutinho told POLITICO in an interview that “riots and protest happening across Euro...
6 months ago
UK hints at green taxes for frequent fliers
LONDON — The U.K. government has opened the door to new green taxes on airline passengers, just five months after playing down the idea.If the aviation sector “is not meeting the emissions reductions trajectory” required to bring down pollution, ministers...
6 months ago
Paris to everyone: Buy French solar panels, forget all competitors
PARIS ― France wants everyone buying French solar panels — and it's not being subtle. "I call on big decision-makers, energy companies and solar parks developers … to massively resort to 'Made in France' panels," France's Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire s...
6 months ago