<p>The Hydrogen Net Zero Investment Roadmap outlines the UK’s strategy to develop a low carbon hydrogen economy, supporting the deep decarbonisation of key UK sectors, particularly in those that are harder to ‘electrify’.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The CCUS Net Zero Investment Roadmap outlines the UK’s strategy to develop its carbon capture, usage, and storage capacity as part of the UK’s decarbonisation efforts.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Heat Pump Investment Roadmap outlines the UK’s strategy to further expand the deployment of heat pumps as a means of advancing climate action and reducing carbon emissions from heating.</p>

<p>The Net Zero Growth Plan, part of “Powering Up Britain”, sets out actions the UK government plans to take to achieve its net zero targets, and is complemented by the Energy Security Plan.</p><p><br></p><p>The Plan responds to the Climate Change Committee’s ‘2022 Progress Report to Parliament’ and provides a Carbon Budget Delivery Update that outlines a package of proposals and policies that will enable the UK to adhere to its carbon budgets. The Plan incorporates 23 of the 25 recommendations produced in the Independent Review of Net Zero report, including expediting the setup of Great British Nuclear, the UK’s new nuclear programme, announcing a new taskforce to deliver on our ambitions for solar power, and setting out long-term commitments to CCUS.&nbsp;</p>

The "Powering Up Britain" Joint Overview sets out the UK government's approach to energy security and net zero, and acts as an introduction to the Energy Security Plan and Net Zero Growth Plan.

<p>On October 26th, 2023, the UK's Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 received Royal Assent and entered into law. The Act lays out provisions for the country's levelling-up and national planning missions, and provisions on reporting on the progress to delivering levelling-up and planning projects. The original bill (Bill 006 2022-23), introduced to Parliament on May 11, 2022, contained provisions on integrating climate considerations by planning authorities in the development of local plans, plans on minerals and waste, supplementary plans, and amending London's spatial development strategy to include climate considerations <span style="color: rgb(7, 30, 74);">in the development of land in Greater London </span>(specifically, the consideration of how the development of land will contribute to the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change).</p><p>The Bill was amended on reporting and presented to the House of Lords by the Commons on December 19, 2022, for an additional reading (HL Bill 84). The amended Bill includes a new section devoted to climate change duties, in Section 96, Chapter 2) Development Plans. Section 96) 'Duties in relation to the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change' stipulates that the Secretary of State must "have special regard to the mitigation of, and adaptation to, climate change in preparing— (a) national policy, planning policy or advice relating to the development or use of land, (b) a national development management policy pursuant to section 38ZA of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004". Furthermore, relevant planning authorities must also hold a special regard for the mitigation of and adaptation to climate change in their planning decisions and granting of planning permissions. According to the amended Act, mitigation climate change includes the achievement of the UK's net zero target for 2050 as well as the achievement of applicable carbon budgets made pursuant to section 4 of the Climate Change Act 2008.</p><p>Final amendments to the Act include duties specific to the Secretary of State, who "must have regard to the need to mitigate, and adapt to, climate change— (a) in preparing a policy which is to be designated as a national development management policy, or (b) in modifying a national development management policy.”</p>

This document sets the UK's subsidy control regime (replacing the EU regime).&nbsp;<br><br>Part 2 of the Act imposes requirements that apply to the giving of subsidies or the making of subsidy schemes. According to Part 2, a public authority must consider the energy and environment principles before deciding to give a subsidy (or make a subsidy scheme) in relation to energy and environment, and must not give the subsidy (or make the scheme) unless it is of the view that the subsidy is consistent with those principles.&nbsp;</div><div><br>Part 3 contains exemptions from the subsidy control requirements, notably&nbsp; for natural disasters and other exceptional circumstances and emergencies;</div><div><br>Part 4 provides for the functions of the CMA in relation to the application of the subsidy control requirements.</div><div><br></div><div>Part 5 contains provisions relating to the enforcement of the subsidy control requirements.</div><div><br>The Act has a whole schedule (Schedule 2) on environmental principles for the issuance of subsidies.&nbsp; This schedule notably states that subsidies in the form of compensation for electricity-intensive users given in the event of an increase in electricity costs resulting from climate policy instruments shall be restricted to sectors at significant risk of carbon leakage due to the cost increase.

<div>This act aims to improve air and water quality, tackle waste, increase recycling, halt the decline of species, and improve the country's natural environment to make it more resilient to climate shocks.&nbsp;<br><br>The document notably contains the following climate-related clauses:<br><br></div><ul><li>amendment of legislation on tree felling and planting. A more ambitious tree planting target could be adopted by the government thanks to the new powers granted by this act.</li><li>Under section 116 on "forest risk commodities", a regulated person in relation to a forest risk commodity must not use that commodity in their UK commercial activities unless relevant local laws were complied with in relation to that commodity. The act further mandates regulated businesses to establish a system of due diligence for each&nbsp; regulated commodity used in their supply chain and to report on it. It also introduces a due diligence enforcement system.</li><li>It introduces resource efficiency requirements and reporting obligations that include information about greenhouse gases emissions.</li></ul>

Section 124 of the Pension Schemes Act 2021 amends the Pensions Act 1995 to allow for the creation of regulations that may impose climate change related requirements on the trustees or managers of an occupational pension scheme of a prescribed description. Requirements may relate to both climate risks and opportunities, and cover both physical risks and transition risks. Managers and Trustees may be required to adopt prescribed assumptions about future events, in particular "the achievement of the Paris Agreement goal or any other climate change goal".<br><br>The ammendments also provide that regulations may require the publication of information relating to the effects of climate change on a given pension scheme in a prescribed format. Ministerial Statements associated with the passage of the Bill make clear that these provisions are intended to allow the Government to require disclosure in line with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures.

<p>The fifth carbon budget (adopted in June 2016) has set emission reduction levels to 57% compared with 1990 levels. It covers the period between 2028-2032 and is in line with the UK's global commitments. The recommended budget and its latest progress report, the CCC (Committee on Climate Change) listed some recommendations in the form of priorities for policy development, including: </p><ul><li>Enabling mature low carbon energy sources (e.g. onshore wind) to come to market</li><li>Defining how energy efficiency improvements shall be financed and delivered</li><li>Increasing adoption of low carbon heat, which includes policies to overcoming behavioural barriers</li><li>Extending vehicle efficiency targets through the 2020s, coupled with policies to increase use of electric vehicles</li></ul><p><br></p><p>In order to decarbonise effectively by 2050, the CCC has called for all new investment from 2020 onwards in power to be low carbon, excluding back-up and balancing plant. From 2035 onwards, the same will apply to all investments in transport and head.The sixth carbon budget was adopted by Parliament on June 22th, 2021.</p>

United Kingdom. National Communication (NC). NC 8. Biennial Reports (BR). BR5. Corrigendum, National Communication,Biennial Report from United Kingdom in 2023

United Kingdom. National Communication (NC). NC 8. Biennial Reports (BR). BR 5., Biennial Report,National Communication from United Kingdom in 2022

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland's submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on the first Global Stocktake, Submission to the Global Stocktake from United Kingdom in 2022

United Kingdom Updated 2030 NDC, Nationally Determined Contribution from United Kingdom in 2022

United Kingdom. 2022 National Inventory Report (NIR), National Inventory Report from United Kingdom in 2022

Bio-energy Capital Grants Scheme

Law passed

Supports biomass-fuelled heat, and CHP projects in the industrial, commercial and community sectors in England. Six rounds of funding have been provided since the Scheme was launched in 2002. Earlier rounds focused support on large-scale biomass power stations. The emphasis in later rounds has been to support small- and medium-sized projects.<br />
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The Bio-energy Capital Grants Scheme promotes the efficient use of biomass for energy, and in particular the use of energy crops by stimulating the early deployment of biomass-fuelled heat and electricity generation projects. It awards capital grants towards the cost of installing equipment in complete biomass-fuelled projects in the industrial, commercial and community sectors.<br />
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The main policy aims of the Scheme are to:<br />
- Deliver capacity to create an initial market for biomass fuel, installation equipment and services<br />
- To stimulate the UK renewables industry<br />
- Provide learning benefits that will accelerate the industry and achieve more efficient and cost effective use of biomass for heat and electricity.

Bio-energy Capital Grants Scheme

Main documents

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