Responding to the Government’s Carbon Plan announcement, the NGO said that full endorsement and compliance with the carbon budgets recommended by the Committee on Climate Change was essential, in order to protect the integrity of the Climate Change Act and the UK’s ability to play its part in fighting climate change.

Nick Molho, head of energy policy at WWF-UK, said:

“The Government should follow the advice of its own advisors and unconditionally adopt the Fourth Carbon Budget. Failing to clearly endorse it now will not only slow down urgent action on addressing climate change, it will also seriously undermine investment certainty in the UK's low-carbon sector and result in the UK missing out on the opportunity of creating hundreds of thousands of jobs in the low-carbon sector."

The Government has announced that meeting the first three carbon budgets would provide a net benefit of £45bn to the UK economy compared with remaining in a high carbon world, and that renewable energy had the greatest per capita emissions reduction.

In the light of this, WWF reiterated its call from the recent Positive Energy report for renewable energy and energy efficiency to be the twin priorities of the UK’s energy policy, in order to deliver a sustainable and affordable low-carbon transition.

“It’s by having a coherent energy policy that places equal importance on improving investment certainty for the renewables industry and on incentivising energy efficiency measures, that the UK will make a successful, sustainable and affordable transition towards a low-carbon power sector.” said Nick Molho.

WWF said adoption of the Fourth Carbon Budget is the absolute minimum required to put the UK on a credible path to reduce its emissions by at least 80% by 2050 as legally mandated by the Climate Change Act.

The NGO welcomed the Government’s renewed call for a 30% emissions reduction target at EU level for 2020. However, it added that increasing ambition now for the second and third carbon budgets would make it much easier for the UK to meet its fourth carbon budget.

“The clock is ticking if the world wants to prevent dangerous climate change and with climate negotiations currently underway in Durban, leadership by some key countries is desperately needed to create momentum behind international efforts to reduce emissions,” said Molho.

“Denmark, the next country to take up the EU presidency, has just unilaterally increased its emission reduction ambitions up to 40% by 2020 to maximise its chances of prospering in the green economy – the UK would do well to follow their example.”