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10th August 2021
03:46pm BST
"We know what must be done to limit global warming - consign coal to history and shift to clean energy sources, protect nature and provide climate finance for countries on the frontline."
Those on social media weren't slow to point out the obvious irony of this statement, valuable though it may be to arrive at this conclusion, even if it is too late. This was very much the sentiment from the opposition leader, Kier Starmer, who tweeted this: https://twitter.com/Keir_Starmer/status/1424807573451067399?s=20 The UK government has adopted a 2035 deadline for a 78 per cent emissions cut, is just three months away from the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow and is also due to publish its strategy on cutting UK emissions to zero by 2050 this autumn.Johnson went on to say that "The UK is leading the way, decarbonising our economy faster than any country in the G20 over the last two decades," the prime minister said, adding: "I hope today's IPCC report will be a wake-up call for the world to take action now". Once again, a fairly defective declaration but nothing we haven't come to expect.
While it is true that the UK has drastically reduced the use of coal, consumption falling from 61 million tonnes in 2013 to eight million tonnes last year, we are still highly dependent on fossil fuels. Natural gas provides most British homes with heating and about 40 per cent of all our electricity. Moreover, The Climate Change Committee - the UK's independent adviser on tackling global warming - states that the UK has adequate policies for just two of the 21 key areas in eliminating carbon emissions. Yeah, really pioneering decarbonisation aren't we, Boris.
