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Government must be prepared to intervene to guarantee carbon cuts Ministers should be prepared to intervene in the market and set a regulatory framework explicitly designed to encourage low-carbon investment, Parliament told government this week. The proposals were highlighted in a report on carbon budgets published on Monday by the Commons Environmental Audit Committee (EAC). The all-party group of MPs argued that the administration was wrong to put too much reliance on the price of carbon to drive investment in low-carbon technologies because the price was "too low and volatile". The report controversially urged the government to opt for a 42 per cent cut in carbon emissions by 2020, significantly higher than the current 32 per cent target for 2022. In addition, the EAC has recommended that the government implement a mechanism to ensure that the sum of the decisions taken by the Infrastructure Planning Commission is consistent with existing carbon budgets. The committee echoed concern voiced by environmental groups that without such a check, the new planning regime might lock the UK into new coal and gas generation instead of renewable schemes. In a related but separate development, the Aldersgate Group has sent an open letter to business secretary Lord Mandelson urging the government to make carbon reporting mandatory. The group, an environmentally focused coalition of companies and organisations including National Grid and United Utilities, pointed out that only half of all FTSE350 companies currently disclosed their carbon emissions. Source: Utility Week © Faversham House Group Ltd 2010. News articles may be copied or forwarded
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