Climate Change Act 2008

Summary

The Climate Change Act 2008 established the UK's legally binding commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As amended in 2019, it requires the UK to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. The Act created the Climate Change Committee (CCC) as an independent advisory body and introduced the system of five-year carbon budgets to ensure progress towards the target. It was the first legislation of its kind in the world.

Key Points

• Net zero target — the UK must ensure that the net UK carbon account for 2050 is at least 100% lower than the 1990 baseline (s.1, as amended by SI 2019/1056)
• Carbon budgets — the Secretary of State must set a carbon budget for each successive five-year period, limiting total greenhouse gas emissions (s.4)
• Climate Change Committee — independent advisory body that recommends carbon budgets and reports on progress (Part 2)
• Government reporting — the Secretary of State must report to Parliament on emissions, policies, and progress towards budgets and the net zero target (ss.14, 16, 18)
• Adaptation — the Government must assess the risks of climate change to the UK and prepare a national adaptation programme (Part 4)
• Trading schemes — powers to establish greenhouse gas emissions trading schemes (Part 3)

Parts & Sections

Amendments History