skyline with wind turbines on the horizon
26 Sep 2024

UK Climate Policy Briefing - September 2024

Our UK policy briefing aims to highlight the latest developments in UK climate policy directly relevant to NEDs.

Summary Briefing

This Summary Briefing highlights the essential need-to-knows for NEDs in terms of emerging policy and regulatory developments, as well as signalling key events on the horizon, and some question prompts for the boardroom to consider when reading the full briefing below. The full briefing offers more detail on each of the key policy areas relevant for boardrooms in regard to the climate agenda.

Key takeaways for Non-Executive Directors

Board discussion questions

  1. Does our business strategy or transition plan reflect the latest policy and regulation developments?
  2. Do we need to expand or adapt our reporting to align with current and forthcoming regulatory changes, and/or incorporate any risks not currently accounted for?
  3. Could these developments impact the potential speed and cost of our transformation?
  4. Have these changes opened up any new opportunities for industry collaboration, investment or funding?

Full Briefing

Introduction

Our quarterly UK policy briefing aims to highlight the latest developments in UK climate policy relevant to Non-Executive Directors (NEDs). Since our last briefing, the new Labour Government has been elected, with the King’s Speech marking the formal start to the new parliament in July. The first 100 days of the new Government has been a busy time for policy announcements, as Labour’s environmental commitments (outlined in its election manifesto, which is covered in Chapter Zero’s 2024 election briefing) come into greater focus. Significant challenges to delivering these commitments remain, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, in an August speech at Downing Street, claiming that his government has inherited a £22 billion black hole in the nation’s finances. With the Climate Change Committee (CCC)’s latest report finding that the UK does not have all the credible plans in place required to meet its 2030 emissions reduction target, addressing these financing gaps is becoming all the more critical to keeping the UK’s climate transition plans on track. However, in his first major foreign policy speech in September, Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, spoke to the severity of the climate crisis as a central concern of the UK’s foreign policy, stating, “This is critical given the scale of the threat, but also the scale of the opportunity. The chance to achieve clean and secure energy, lower bills and drive growth for the UK, and to preserve the natural world around us, on which all prosperity ultimately depends.” 

Major climate-related developments in the UK policy landscape

Forthcoming policy publications

  • In our next piece, we will cover the Chancellor’s Budget, which is set for 30 October 2024 
  • We will discuss COP 16, the sixteenth Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), which will take place from 21 October to 1 November 2024. This will be the first full biodiversity COP since COP 15 in December 2022, and the main agenda topics include assessing international action following the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. 
  • We will highlight the key outcomes from COP29 in Azerbaijan, the 29th COP of the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which will be held between 11 and 22 November, and what these mean for the business community and board directors. This will include analysis of any additional commitments made by the UK Government in its updated NDC.  

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