Source · Select Committees · Defence Committee
Recommendation 16
16
Rejected
Appoint a dedicated Ministry of Defence climate change director for focused decarbonisation coordination.
Conclusion
The Ministry of Defence should appoint a dedicated climate change director who would be able to fully focus on coordinating carbon reductions across the whole of Defence, including holding separate commands and organisations to account for progress in reducing emissions against their individual goals and measuring and reporting that progress in a timely manner. (Paragraph 94) 34 Defence and Climate Change
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the recommendation to appoint a dedicated climate change director, stating that the existing Levelling Up, Union, Climate Change and Sustainability (LUCCS) Directorate already coordinates these areas, and that combining these responsibilities brings together the three pillars of sustainability within the MOD.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
. The publication of the MOD’s Climate Change and Strategic Approach in March 2021 started to build momentum for action and a narrative for change. The work of the then- Directorate of Climate Change and Sustainability, now the Levelling Up, Union, Climate Change and Sustainability Directorate (LUCCS), continues. This is supported, across the Department, by organisational sustainability champions, their specialist teams, a growing ambassador network, Defence’s Green Network (over 1000 members strong) and the array of co- ordinated initiatives. The LUCCS Director oversees this portfolio, which flows from the Defence Command Paper Refresh, through the Defence Strategy, the Climate Change and Sustainability Strategic Approach and into clearly articulated climate and environment Departmental outcomes in the Defence Plan. The LUCCS Directorate is responsible for the MOD’s environmental operating model, including Environmental Protection, to ensure that it is complying with current regulations whilst ensuring that it is resilient to the impact of climate change. To support this, resources are focused on capability, policy and process and on coherence across the MOD’s Climate Change and Sustainability activity. This is mirrored by a focused team looking at the Levelling Up and Union considerations across the Department. There is a link between the economic and social elements of Levelling Up and the Union and the environmental aspects of Climate Change and Sustainability. This puts all three pillars of sustainability together in the MOD for the first time.