Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether the Government plans to set a binding 2030 decarbonisation target during this Parliament.

We are committed to doing our part to tackle climate change, in line with the Climate Change Act. Under the Act we are already required to reduce UK emissions by 80% by 2050 compared to 1990 levels, and to meet our carbon budgets, which set emissions reduction targets up to 2027. The Climate Change Act also commits us to set an economy-wide carbon budget for the period 2028-32 by 30^th June 2016. As we stated in our 2015 manifesto, we will cut emissions as cost-effectively as possible and will not support additional distorting and expensive power sector targets.