The U.K. government may pivot away from its embrace of green energy and climate goals as prices continue to rise for British consumers, according to The Telegraph.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has suggested that the country’s aim to ban new gas-powered vehicles by the end of the decade may not come to fruition, saying Monday that green energy initiatives must be “proportionate and pragmatic” to not unduly impact the lives of citizens, according to The Telegraph. [emphasis, links added]
Sunak did not directly confirm his government’s commitment to the policy when asked directly.
“We’re going to make progress towards net zero, but we’re going to do that in a proportionate and pragmatic way that doesn’t unnecessarily give people more hassle and more costs in their lives,” Sunak said, according to Financial Times.
Just under 50% of British adults are using less fuel around their homes because of increased energy prices, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Sunak’s Monday remarks followed the news over the weekend that several Tories under Sunak have urged him to roll back other green policies, such as the plan to phase out new gas boilers by 2035, according to The Telegraph.
Energy prices in the U.K. have spiked considerably in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, with the May 2023 price of energy goods having risen by more than 8% from May 2022, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.
Overall, consumer prices are currently running nearly 8% higher than they were last year, according to the BBC.
“Of course net zero is important to me,” Sunak said when pressed for details, according to The Telegraph. “So yes, we’re going to keep making progress towards our net zero ambitions and we’re also going to strengthen our energy security.”
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, also a member of the Tory party, initially announced the gas-powered car phase-out in November 2020, according to The Telegraph.
The remarks from Sunak followed a relative over-performance by the Tories in smaller elections last week.
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The climate change movement lost the scientific debate long ago. I won’t go into detail. However, on the political side they have had complete victory with most nations having bought into the fraud and trillions of dollars being spent on the agenda. I have always believed that the climate change movement will be brought down not by the science, but by the cost and impact on peoples’ lives. The statements by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak are probably early signs of this.