However, he said the government had "got to keep on making the case, and at the moment there is a vacuum and silence".
He said politicians needed to "provide a vision" to voters adding "that is what is needed at this time"."It will either get filled by the Labour Party with their green industrial policy, or it will get filled by the climate delayers and detractors who then dominate the front pages of the Telegraph and the Mail.
Last year, he was commissioned by then-Prime Minister Liz Truss to review the government's delivery of net zero to ensure it was "pro-growth and pro-business". Mr Skidmore, who is standing down as an MP at the next general election, told the Institute for Government event that having voted against the government on fracking In October, he had been "fully prepared to be sacked" from his climate role.Addressing the same conference, Labour's shadow energy secretary Ed Miliband said climate change was a "great threat" but also provided a "great opportunity".
He argued that changing the UK's sources of energy would ensure the country was not "at the mercies of the Putins of this world". The UK has been trying to decrease its reliance on Russian oil and gas since the invasion of Ukraine last year.its pledge to invest £28bn a year in green industries. The party says it will ramp up investment over time, if it wins the next general election.