Zero emissions pledge ‘needs taxes on meat, fuel and flights’

CUTTING greenhouse emissions to “net zero” as pledged by the Government could require a tax on meat, flights and fuel, analysis by the London School of Economics has shown.

Analysts have advised unfreezing the fuel duty escalator which would add 10p per litre to fuel duty for drivers in 2020, rising to 14p per litre in 2050.

Experts at the LSE also suggest a new tax on red meat and fertilisers which would see the price of beef rise by 23p per kilogram and the price of lamb by 46p per kilogram in 2020, rising to 70p and £1.41 by 2050 respectively.

Taxing aviation would also see the cost of long haul flights rising by 6.5 per cent which would equate to an increase of £33 from £527 to £560 for a flight from London to New York.

The analysts have already been in discussions with the Department for Business (BEIS) and are due to meet with Treasury officials next month.

‘It should at least ensure that there are wheat fields for our great grandchildren to run through’

Net zero means achieving an overall balance between greenhouse gases, such as carbon, emitted by human activities and greenhouse gases removed from the atmosphere by humans.

A leaked letter last week showed the Treasury warning that making the shift to a zero emissions economy would cost at least £1trillion.

But yesterday, Theresa May pledged to end Britain’s contribution to climate change by 2050. “Some people think you can either have low emissions or economic growth,” said the Prime Minister. “We have shown you can lower emissions and have economic growth at the same time.”

Hitting net zero will mean an end to the heating of homes with traditional gas boilers, more green electricity, and a switch from petrol and diesel cars to electric vehicles, walking and cycling.

David Reay, professor of carbon management at the University of Edinburgh, said: “Time will tell what legacy it represents for the current Prime Minister, but it should at least ensure there are wheat fields for our great grandchildren to run through too.”

Politicians are making a habit of introducing legally binding climate change targets that they then leave to others to deliver. As one of her “legacy” policies, Theresa May has authorised a new and binding 2050 carbon-free deadline that has had campaigners purring with delight. This is historic, they say. The UK is a beacon to the rest of the world.

Reducing carbon emissions as part of global efforts to stop warming is a legitimate policy that has seen considerable cuts to emissions in recent years and more investment in renewables. But as we shut down fossil fuel-burning industries and replace them with imported products, all we are doing is exporting those emissions to countries that are not making similar reductions, if any at all.

Globally, renewable energy has increased only marginally since world leaders attending the Earth Summit in 1992 committed to tackling climate change. The UK is unlikely to meet the current target of 80 per cent cuts to emissions by 2030, yet is introducing an even more ambitious target that the Treasury estimates will cost £1 trillion.

Supporters say this is a small amount annually when spread over 30 years, but it still represents a slowdown in economic growth about which they are not being entirely straightforward with the public. UN modelling suggests that meeting the net zero carbon target by 2050 would cost 5.3 per cent of GDP – an annual cost of £187 billion for the UK, assuming the policy’s efficient implementation. Other studies say it could be far higher without making a significant impact on global emissions. A better approach than setting impossible targets is to encourage investment in green energy research, development and new technologies.