Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 11
Twenty-Third Report - Measuring and reporting public sector greenhouse gas emissions
Published 2 Nov 2022
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee Measuring and reporting public sector greenhouse gas emissions All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Elsewhere in the public sector we have heard that some bodies are going further to report scope 3 emissions and therefore are providing a fuller picture of their carbon footprint. BEIS told us that for some time the NHS has had reporting requirements that include some elements of scope 3 emissions in place and confirmed to us after the session that the NHS current tracking and reporting covers all three scopes in full. This includes all indirect emissions that occur in producing and transporting NHS goods and services, including the full supply chain.26 The devolved administrations in Wales and Scotland have more stringent emissions reporting requirements that capture more scope 15 Q 35, C&AG’s Report, para 5, 1.15, 2.5, 2.8 16 Qq 35–36, C&AG’s Report, para 12 17 Comptroller and Auditor General, Local government and net zero in England, Session 2021–22, HC 304, 16 July 2021 (para 11) 18 Q 35 19 C&AG’s Report, para 4 20 C&AG’s Report, para 10 21 Qq 3–4 22 Qq 3–4, C&AG’s Report, para 3.5 23 Q 78 24 C&AG’s Report, para 1.12 25 C&AG’s Report, para 1.11 26 Qq 81–82, Letter dated 26 July 2022 from BEIS to the Committee. Measuring and reporting public sector greenhouse gas emissions 11 3 emissions and could provide useful lessons for the UK government to learn from.27 BEIS told us that scope 3 emissions are likely to be captured in some form in future iterations of the GGCs.28 27 Qq 89–90 28 Q 4 12 Measuring and reporting public sector greenhouse gas emissions 2 Leadership and oversight Responsibilities within Whitehall
From: Public Accounts Committee, Twenty-Third Report - Measuring and reporting public sector greenhouse gas emissions (HC 39), 2 November 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 24 February 2023 (deadline 2 January 2023).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government states that it agrees with each of the Committee's five recommendations on measuring and reporting public sector emissions, while setting out qualifications on how some will be delivered.
- On standards for measuring and reporting, the government agrees, but says this "may not entail a uniform approach consistency across the whole of the large and varied sector", so detailed guidance may stay with bodies best placed to advise.
- It commits to set out a timetable for further work towards a coherent measurement and reporting framework in summer 2023, which "will be dependent on views from other relevant authorities across the public sector".
- On consolidating guidance, it agrees guidance should be aligned "where possible" but "notes" that different documents may be required for different purposes. BEIS has commissioned work to signpost relevant guidance, to be published in early 2023.
- On scope 3 emissions, work to develop the next set of GGCs targets "will consider if and how" further reporting requirements should be included, taking place throughout 2023-25, with a target implementation date of Autumn 2025.