It's only been three years since the UK passed a law to achieve net zero by 2050. In this short time, we have made tremendous progress at home and abroad. But to complete this thirty-year transition, we need to hold our nerve and keep our foot on the accelerator.
Unless we keep global warming below 1.5 degrees, the UK will see warmer winters and hotter summers, heavier rainfall, and more frequent heat waves and storms. Buildings in low-lying areas will be regularly submerged by floods. Nearly 200,000 homes could be eroded away by rising sea levels. And farmers will struggle with droughts, unable to grow certain crops or plan for growing seasons.
Some net zero sceptics are using Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine and soaring energy prices as a reason to hit the brakes. However, their approach would wreck our last chance to tackle climate change, and for what? Delaying the transition to a low-carbon economy would likely make the cost of living and our energy security worse, leaving our country colder and poorer.
More domestic fossil fuel production isn’t the solution either. For as long as we rely on oil and gas, we will be reliant on volatile international markets under the malign influence of the Kremlin and other rogue states like Iran or Venezuela. If we are going to lower people's bills and defund the Russian war machine, we need to take back control of our energy production.
That does not mean attempting once again to frack across the English countryside. International gas markets would set the price for anything we managed to extract. Instead, we need to grasp the UK's vast wind resources - and yes, become the Saudi Arabia of wind as the Prime Minister envisages.
In just ten years renewables went from providing 7 per cent of our electricity to 43 per cent. As the industry grew, prices plummeted by 78 per cent making offshore wind among the cheapest, cleanest power available to us. Even before the energy crunch, building new wind power capacity was four times cheaper than gas generation. Now it's six times cheaper.
Vladimir Putin hopes that the West's resolve over Ukraine will break as the cost of living soars. He wants us to buckle first so Europe stays hooked on Russian supplies that will fund his imperial ambitions. If we dither over renewables and delay the transition by sticking with fossil fuels, only the Kremlin will win - while we all lose as the climate deteriorates.
Going into reverse gear now would also sacrifice the investment, clean industries and new skilled jobs the UK is set to secure thanks to our ambitious climate policies. Offshore wind power alone will create 100,000 jobs by the end of the decade. Even more can be created by leading in clean hydrogen production, carbon capture and storage and electric car manufacturing.
Three years on from the UK's world-leading net zero legislation and the opportunities of decarbonisation and risks of inaction have never been greater. Reaching carbon neutrality is no longer solely a climate policy. It's core to our future national security and prosperity. Ultimately, that's why achieving net zero is a truly conservative mission.
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