Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, by what date will NHS Trusts be expected to decarbonise in accordance with their Green Plans; and how this will be monitored.

Green plans set out the key actions each trust and integrated care board (ICB) will take to deliver emissions reductions and support resilience to climate impacts over three-year periods. This work supports the delivery of the National Health Service’s system targets of achieving Net Zero for directly controlled emissions by 2040, and for emissions that the NHS can influence by 2045.

ICBs and trusts are required to report an annual summary of progress on the delivery of green plans to their board and to publish this in their annual report, including actions taken and planned, with quantitative progress data. In addition, NHS England estimates emissions and progress towards Net Zero on behalf of all NHS organisations in its Annual Report and Accounts.