London — The UK has fallen behind on its promises to slash emissions and fight climate change despite claims it’s leading major industrialised nations in its fight to slow global warming.
The findings in an annual report to parliament show that efforts to rein in fossil-fuel emissions have largely been confined to the power generation industry, with policies for other segments of the economy too narrow to be effective. The report suggests ministers so far are only paying lip service to a goal shared by the main political parties to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
In the past 12 months, Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative government has delivered one of 25 policies needed to meet emissions targets, the report said. Last year, UK GHG emissions fell 2%, bringing to 40% the total reduction from levels reached in 1990 when the consensus about the need to tackle global warming gained traction.
Britain isn’t alone in missing its targets. Most EU nations are also behind on the goals they set for 2030, according to a report from the bloc’s regulatory arm released last month.