Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 11
11
We asked whether by the time we get to COP 26 everybody will have a...
Conclusion
We asked whether by the time we get to COP 26 everybody will have a good idea of exactly how the government is going to meet its net carbon target by 2050. HM Treasury told us this was really a matter for BEIS. It explained that net zero would require an “immensely complicated” programme of work over nearly 30 years, and which will depend on things that are unknowable today, for example future technological change. While HM Treasury was clear that current and future governments would need to change the strategy, for example, as new evidence comes along, it acknowledged that it was critical for businesses and households to have “the best idea that they can have of the future” to reduce the whole economy cost. HM Treasury told us that the cross-government strategy was intended to set “out a very clear direction, next steps, plans and strategies, sector by sector, then an overall framework to try to pull all of those together.”20 It also told us that the government accepted that further action, beyond the current range of tax, regulation and other instruments, would be needed to hit the 2050 net zero target.21 The impact of environmental policies on tax revenue
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
1a: PAC recommendation: HM Treasury should aim to become an exemplar finance department in supporting government’s environmental goals like net zero; 1.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: Autumn 2021 1.2 HM Treasury is already playing an active role in supporting the government’s environmental goals, including delivery of the legally-binding net zero commitment. As well as its role in relation to tax and spend policy and the financial services sector, HM Treasury is conducting an analytical review exploring the key issues and trade-offs as the UK decarbonises. Against a backdrop of significant uncertainty on technology and costs, as well as changes to the economy over the next 30 years, the Net Zero Review (NZR) focuses on the potential exposure of households and sectors to the transition, and its final report will highlight factors to be taken into account in designing policy that will allocate costs over this time horizon. 1.3 Work on the government’s overall Net Zero Strategy is being led by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), and HM Treasury is closely involved in developing this including to ensure that tax options are considered alongside regulation and spending.