Ten Point Plan – A Green Industrial Revolution

The prime minister announced the ten-point plan for the governments self-styled green industrial revolution in November 20.

The ten-point plan sets out the approach government will take to build back better, support green jobs, and accelerate our path to net zero.

Green public transport, cycling and walking

We will accelerate the transition to more active and sustainable transport by investing in rail and bus services, and in measures to help pedestrians and cyclists. We will fund thousands of zero-emission buses and give our towns and cities cycle lanes worthy of Holland.

Hydrogen

Working with industry the UK is aiming for 5GW of low-carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030. We are also pioneering hydrogen heating trials, starting with a Hydrogen Neighbourhood and scaling up to a potential Hydrogen Town before the end of this decade.

Nuclear power

Nuclear power provides a reliable source of low-carbon electricity. We are pursuing large-scale nuclear, whilst also looking to the future of nuclear power in the UK through further investment in Small Modular Reactors and Advanced Modular Reactors.

Offshore wind

By 2030 we plan to quadruple our offshore wind capacity so as to generate more power than all our homes use today, backing new innovations to make the most of this proven technology and investing to bring new jobs and growth to our ports and coastal regions.

Jet zero and green ships

By taking immediate steps to drive the uptake of sustainable aviation fuels, investments in R&D to develop zero-emission aircraft and developing the infrastructure of the future at our airports and seaports, we will make the UK the home of green ships and planes.

Greener buildings

Making our buildings more energy efficient and moving away from fossil fuel boilers will help make people’s homes warm and comfortable, whilst keeping bills low. We will go with the grain of behaviour, and set a clear path that sees the gradual move away from fossil fuel boilers over the next fifteen years as individuals replace their appliances and are offered a lower carbon, more efficient alternative, supporting 50,000 jobs.

Carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS)

Our ambition is to capture 10Mt of carbon dioxide a year by 2030 – the equivalent of 4 million cars’ worth of annual emissions. We will invest up to £1 billion to support the establishment of CCUS in 4 industrial clusters, creating ‘SuperPlaces’ in areas such as the North East, the Humber, North West, Scotland and Wales. We will bring forward details in 2021 of a revenue mechanism to bring through private sector investment into industrial carbon capture and hydrogen projects via our new business models to support these projects.

Protecting our natural environment

We will safeguard our cherished landscapes, restore habitats for wildlife in order to combat biodiversity loss and adapt to climate change, all whilst creating green jobs.

Zero emission vehicles

From 2030 we will end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans, 10 years earlier than planned, and provide a £2.8 billion package of measures to support industry and consumers to make the switch to cleaner vehicles.

Green finance and innovation

We have committed to raising total R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027 and in July 2020 published the UK Research and Development Roadmap. The next phase of green innovation will help bring down the cost of the net zero transition, nurture the development of better products and new business models, and influence consumer behaviour.

Labour called the plan “deeply, deeply disappointing” in ambition with d Miliband, the shadow business secretary, whose plan for a green Covid recovery involves £30bn spent over 18 months, said the No 10 proposals were low on ambition and contained several “reheated pledges”.

We believe the announcement is a good platform to build from ahead of COP26 later this year. However, the plan along with the Energy Whiter Paper need to go further to address the climate emergency we face.