UK sets world’s most ambitious climate target

Will Britain’s move create a global turning point? Some think one relatively small island can’t make a difference – but others believe the UK will set a powerful example. The year is 2035. All cars run on electricity, not petrol; charging stations line every street. The air feels clean, even in city centres. Long-haul flights are a thing of the past – now everyone takes their holidays by train. Most people only eat meat and dairy once a week, if at all. Outside the cities, acres of land are covered in new forest. That is how the UK might look under new plans, released yesterday, to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 78% by 2035. In itself, this will not make a huge difference to global carbon emissions. The UK makes up just 1.1% of the total, after all. But supporters of the new target argue the country can lead by example, showing that steep cuts in emissions are possible, and encouraging others to make similar cuts. Other countries are also looking to toughen up their climate policies. This week, Joe Biden promised a radical new plan for cutting emissions. France is pushing ahead with a set of climate laws that will include a ban on domestic flights. And with the German Green Party looking increasingly likely to lead the country’s next government, some think we are witnessing a sea change in the global response to the climate crisis. Some also see this as a question of climate justice. They point out that while the UK’s total emissions are relatively small, its per capita emissions are among the highest in the world. So it is only fair, they say, that British people should cut back more than others. But many are sceptical that this is a genuine milestone. They argue that the climate crisis can only be solved by the world’s biggest polluters: China, the USA and India. And some claim that the UK is not wholly committed to its new target. It is not currently on track even to meet its previous target of a 68% emissions cut by 2030. The government has been criticised for giving out new licences for oil and gas exploration in the North Sea, and proposing a new coal mine in Cumbria, although that plan has now been shelved. Will Britain’s move create a global turning point? Turning up the heat Yes, say some. Even if the UK’s carbon footprint is not huge compared with China’s, it still pollutes more than the vast majority of poorer countries. The climate crisis can only be solved if every wealthy country drastically scales back its emissions, and the UK is showing the way forward. No, say others. No matter what any one country does, there is simply no way of cutting emissions fast enough to avoid a global climate crisis. Instead, we should focus on reducing the impacts of global heating: more extreme weather events, mass migrations and loss of biodiversity. KeywordsGreenhouse gas - Gases in the Earth's atmosphere that trap heat, contributing to global warming. Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapour are all greenhouse gases.