LONDON — Ministers will not weaken future U.K. climate targets by carrying over surplus emissions reductions achieved in previous years.
The government announced Tuesday that it would “forego” the option of carrying over headroom from one carbon budget to the next, after the U.K. reduced emissions more than legally required during the previous budget period.
In a written ministerial statement published Tuesday, Energy Minister Justin Tomlinson said the government is “already on track to over-deliver” in the fourth carbon budget period, without relying on the “carry-over.”
Under the Climate Change Act, ministers can decide to carry over any surplus from the previous carbon budget period — blocks of legally binding five year emissions reduction targets — to make future targets easier to hit. The U.K. overachieved its last carbon budget, covering 2018 to 2022, by around 15 percent, mainly as a result of external factors such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
