Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had on the role decarbonising the maritime sector can play in reaching Net Zero by 2050; and will he make a statement.

In June 2019, the UK became the first major economy to legislate for a net zero domestic greenhouse gas emission target by 2050^[1]. This target includes emissions from domestic shipping, making the case for supporting maritime decarbonisation even more urgent^[2]. The Clean Maritime Plan, published in 2019, sets out an ambitious and bold plan to put the sector on a path to deliver this objective while securing growth opportunities for the UK.

The publication of the Clean Maritime Plan was underpinned by extensive stakeholder engagement with the UK maritime industry on decarbonising maritime, including through the Clean Maritime Council, which was established in 2018 to ensure strong collaboration between Government, industry and academia on this matter. This partnership continues today, supporting my Department’s action in tackling shipping emissions and ensuring that the whole transport sector delivers on the legislative objective to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

^[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-becomes-first-major-economy-to-pass-net-zero-emissions-law

^[2] Whilst international shipping emissions are not formally included in the net-zero target at present, the Government is still required to take these emissions into account when setting carbon budgets under the Climate Change Act.