BOURNEMOUTH, England — The Liberal Democrats have scrapped their 2045 net-zero target and aligned with the Labour government’s 2050 goal instead.
Members passed a motion at the party’s conference in Bournemouth Sunday, which supports “the U.K.’s existing net-zero framework and 2050 target.”
This replaces the pledge, which had been party policy since 2019, to achieve net zero by 2045.
The motion also confirmed the party’s support for the rollout of small modular reactors and a transition plan for North Sea oil and gas workers.
These were included alongside red meat proposals for green advocates, such as investing in renewables, restoring nature, and ensuring community-driven clean energy projects.
The Lib Dems, led by former Energy Secretary Ed Davey, have also restated support for the government’s 2030 Clean Power goal, which aims to remove fossil fuels almost entirely from the energy mix by the end of this decade.
Duncan Brack, who chaired the Lib Dem climate policy working group, said: “The past five years of Conservative government inaction has meant that achieving net zero by 2045 is no longer practically possible. Our new climate policy sets out a way to achieve net zero by 2050 for people and the planet, but government must act now.”
A party spokesperson said: “Liberal Democrats have the most ambitious plans of any major political party, with our plan to cut bills by half within ten years, by breaking the link between gas prices and electricity costs, and supporting homegrown renewable energy.”
The post UK Lib Dems ditch flagship net-zero policy appeared first on Politico.
