With local elections in England looming, net-zero is poised to become the next big political ‘wedge’ issue. Ever since Theresa May’s government set a legally binding target in 2019 there has been consensus between the Conservatives and Labour over the need to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. That fragile accord ended last month when Kemi Badenoch opined that it would be “impossible” for the UK to meet its target without a “serious drop in living standards” or by “bankrupting” the country.
By positioning the Tories alongside Nigel Farage’s Reform party as net-zero sceptics, Badenoch has sought to create a clear dividing line with the Labour government. That made yesterday’s (Thursday’s) speech by Ed Miliband all the more significant. Opening a two-day summit in London on the future of energy security, the secretary of state for energy security and net-zero reasserted the government’s ambition to deliver clean power by 2030. “Ours is a hard-headed approach to the role of low carbon power as a route to energy security,” said Miliband as he warned of the risk of the UK leaving itself significantly exposed to volatile oil and gas prices. Ahead of the summit, Miliband’s department had unveiled £300m of funding to invest in supply chains for domestic offshore wind through Great British Energy.
Whereas the last great political wedge issue – Brexit – split the country almost down the middle, evidence suggests that on climate change and net-zero the public is far more aligned – and not in a helpful way for Badenoch and Farage. Polling from More in Common has shown opposition to net-zero is extremely limited with only a small minority of voters seeing it as a bad policy. This is consistent with global opinion. Published this week, the results of a survey of 130,000 people across 125 countries found a huge majority of 89% want greater political action on climate change, with 69% expressing a willingness to contribute 1% of their personal income for it to happen. Despite this, researchers found “the world is in a state of pluralistic ignorance, wherein individuals around the globe systematically underestimate the willingness of their fellow citizens to act”. One professor quoted in The Guardian described this as a “self-fulfilling spiral of silence” whereby individuals don’t believe their concerns are shared by others.
Advocates for a more sustainable food system are planning to take matters into their own hands. Tomorrow (Saturday) will see thousands of people take to the streets of London under the banner of ‘Food in our hands’, part of the UK’s food sovereignty movement. Coordinated by civil society organisations including the Landworkers’ Alliance, marchers will demand a bigger budget for nature-friendly farming across all four nations of the UK, the implementation of a national food strategy for England, policies to guarantee a fair and secure income for farmers and farmworkers, and measures to improve access to land for new entrants.
The question of how best to use England’s land is set to become another political football once the government publishes the final version of its land use framework. A consultation on the initial proposal closes today (Friday). The ambition is to create a framework that helps balance the competing – and sometimes complementary – demands on the land from food production, housing, energy infrastructure and recreation, while making space for healthier ecosystems that restore nature and help meet climate goals. The proposal is for some of the least productive agricultural land to be taken out of production altogether and for other land to provide environmental benefits alongside food production, although the government says it sees no net reduction in domestic food production due to productivity improvements and innovation.
With a new food strategy also in development and a potential trade deal with the US in the offing (reports suggest the Trump administration is pushing for concessions on agriculture and food standards), don’t expect food politics to simmer down any time soon.
Elsewhere in Footprint news this week:
- A survey finds organisations that leverage AI to deliver sustainability initiatives achieve greater impact than those that don’t. More.
- Climate change is redrawing the map for the production of wines. More.
- The world’s leading chocolate companies are showing signs of improvement on key sustainability issues. More.
