Warwickshire County Council has welcomed the strengthening of the UK Government’s commitment to dramatically reduce carbon emissions.
On the 20 April 2021, the UK Government enshrined in law a commitment to cut carbon emissions by 78% by 2035 as part of its Sixth Climate Budget. This will bring the UK more than three-quarters of the way to net zero by 2050 and is the most ambitious pledge from any country to reduce its carbon footprint.
In addition, for the first time, this latest carbon budget will incorporate the UK’s share of international aviation and shipping emissions – an important part of the government’s decarbonisation efforts that will allow for these emissions to be consistently accounted for in the future.
Speaking about the Government’s Sixth Carbon Budget and commitment to reduce the nation’s carbon emissions, Monica Fogarty, Chief Executive at Warwickshire County Council said: “On behalf of Warwickshire County Council and all our residents around the County, we welcome the decision to commit to the ambitious carbon reduction by 2035. The amount of carbon reduction within this relatively short amount of time is reflective of the scale of the problem that we are all facing.
“Since we, as a Council, declared a climate change emergency in July 2019, we have been fully committed to minimising our own carbon footprint and supporting our residents and businesses to do the same. Moving towards net zero emissions now underpins every decision that we make. Our commitment to this is undiminished, despite the COVID-19 pandemic and it is a key priority of the Council’s recovery plans.
“Although there is still much to do, there is already some fantastic work going on within this council and with our communities across the County to help reduce carbon emissions.. As a Council, we recently launched the £1 million Green Shoots Community Climate Change Fund to support projects from community and voluntary groups which aim to reduce the County’s carbon footprint and have a range of other innovative schemes, from Net Biodiversity to solar panel installation, that are doing the same.
“We want to ensure that Warwickshire plays its part in meeting the ambitions set out as part of the Sixth Climate Budget and we look forward to doing this alongside our residents, businesses and community groups.”
For more information about how Warwickshire County Council is facing the challenges of the climate change emergency and how you can get involved, visit: www.Warwickshire.gov.uk/theclimateemergency