UK must cut greenhouse gases by 80 per cent, says Committee

By Louise Gray, Environment CorrespondentLast Updated: 10:16PM GMT 28 Nov 2008

Lord Turner: the Committee recommends an 80 per cent emissions cut by 2050
The UK should cut greenhouse gases by at least 80 per cent by the middle of the century, according to a committee set up to advise the Government on climate change.

The Government is currently committed to reducing carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050.
But the Committee on Climate Change, chaired by Lord Turner, said the target will have to rise to at least 80 per cent on 1990 levels in order to help the world keep rising temperatures in check.Gordon Brown, the prime minister, has signalled he would accept a target of 80 per cent by 2050.However Lord Turner's report makes clear the target should include all greenhouse gases, not just carbon emissions.
The report also said that although emissions from aviation and shipping do not need to be included in the target in the short term, they must come down signficiantly in the long term if the reduction is to have a meaningful effect on climate change.
The report puts intense pressure on the Government to curb energy use and increase the use of renewables.
In a letter to the new Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband, Lord Turner said the target could be achieved at a cost of one to two per cent of GDP in 2050 - or half of a year's worth of growth.
He cited the following options to cut emissions:
* Improved energy efficiency by insulation, power saving and new technology in buildings and industry.
* An increase in renewables and replacing existing fossil fuel power stations with "clean technologies" like nuclear and coal connected to carbon capture storage.
* Cutting emissions from fuel by hybrid engines, biofuels and electric cars.
* Improved efficiency in heating by combined heat and power stations, ground source heat pumps and use of biomass in boilers.
* Reducing carbon produced by heavy industry such as steel and cement through new technologies.
Lord Turner said: "We have the potential to reduce our emissions by 80 per cent or more by using energy far more efficiently, by investing in developing new energy sources and by making relatively minor lifestyle changes."
The comittee was originally going to report at the end of the year but the date was brought forward in order to have a better chance of being included in the new Bill.
Mr Brown said he wanted the target raised from 60 to 80 per cent at the Labour Party Conference last month and Mr Miliband responded positively to the report.
Mr Miliband said: "This is a pressing issue and we'll respond to the recommendations swiftly.
"Setting an emissions target in the Climate Change Bill and establishing my new Department of Energy and Climate Change sends out a strong message, but the hard work will be for us all to make emission reductions a reality over the coming decades."
Environmental groups also welcomed the increased target, claiming that controversial plans to build a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth and a third runway at Heathrow will make meeting the target more difficult. But there was concern that there was no binding target on aviation emissions, although the report made it clear there should be a reduction in the long term.
Andy Atkins, executive director of Friends of the Earth, said the Climate Change Bill, which is the first of its kind in the world, was "trail-blazing legislation."
But he added: "We cannot afford to ignore pollution from international aviation and shipping - that would be like going on a calorie-controlled diet and ignoring the calories from chocolate bars."