Carbon Budget Approach to Targets Agreed
Legislation that will see Scotland move to using five year carbon budgets to set climate targets has been passed.
The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Bill amends the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 to introduce limits on the amount of greenhouse gases emitted in Scotland over a five-year period.
The move, which is based on recommendations from the independent Climate Change Committee (CCC), aims to provide a more reliable framework for emissions reduction. This is because the previous annual emissions targets are vulnerable to year-to-year fluctuations caused by events such as a particularly cold winter or a global pandemic.
The legislation enables the carbon budgets to be set through secondary legislation based on the expert advice from the Climate Change Committee. The Bill also changes the current deadline to finalise the next Climate Change Plan for Scotland so the Plan can align with the process for setting the new carbon budgets.
I am pleased to see this Bill pass, keeping Scotland on track in its journey to a net zero, clean energy future.
GRAEME
We have made a great deal of progress down that road, and the measures in this legislation will ensure emissions continue to be brought down through a just transition.
Carbon budgeting has been adopted by numerous governments across the world and will form the basis for policy-making going forward.
This SNP Scottish Government has demonstrated leadership on climate action and is continuing to do so.
Legislation to move Scotland to use 5 year carbon budgets to set climate targets has been passed.
— Net Zero Scotland (@ScotGovNetZero) November 5, 2024
The Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Bill requires Ministers to set limits on the amount of greenhouse gases emissions.
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Scotland is now halfway to net zero and continues to be ahead of the UK as a whole in delivering long term emissions reductions.
ACTING CABINET SECRETARY FOR NET ZERO, GILLIAN MARTIN
The Scottish Governmentās commitment to ending Scotlandās contribution to global emissions by 2045 at the latest, as agreed by Parliament on a cross-party basis, is unwavering. It is crucial that our target pathway to 2045 is set at a pace and scale that is feasible and reflects the latest independent expert advice.
Carbon budgets are an established model for assessment of emissions reductions used by other nations including Japan, France, England and Wales, and they will include emissions from international aviation and shipping and there will be no provision to ācarry overā emissions from one carbon budget to another.
We will continue leading on climate action that is fair, ambitious and capable of rising to the emergency before us and reflects our commitment to the ambition of credible emissions reduction.
Background
Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets) (Scotland) Bill
