I am making this statement for the benefit of hon. and right hon. Members to bring to your attention the publication of the final statement of the third carbon budget today. The third carbon budget, which ran from 2018 to 2022, was set in 2009 according to what was considered an ambitious but technically feasible emissions reductions trajectory at the time. This statement confirms we have not only achieved, but also over-delivered on the target for this period by 15%.
By the end of the period in 2022, UK net greenhouse gas emissions were 50% lower than the base year emissions, and provisional data for 2023 shows we have gone even further. This makes the UK the first major economy to halve its emissions since 1990, while also growing its economy by around 80%.
The Climate Change Act was passed in 2008 and amended in 2019 to increase the ambition of our 2050 target to net zero. The Act sets out the legal framework to keep us on track to net zero, with carbon budgets setting interim targets over five-year periods. It also includes flexibilities to support the delivery of carbon budgets, such as the use of international carbon units and ability to carry forward over-performance from one carbon budget period to the next to incentivise early delivery of emissions savings. The statement published today confirms that we have not relied on international carbon units to meet the third carbon budget.
When the Climate Change Act was being passed, the then Government insisted that the option to carry forward over-delivery was essential to incentivise early action. I am also pleased to confirm today that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Claire Coutinho) has decided to forgo the option to carry forward any over-performance from the third carbon budget to the fourth carbon budget. We are already on track to over-deliver once again in the fourth carbon budget without the need to carry-over.
The performance and the decision I have announced today demonstrate this Government’s unwavering commitment to meeting our ambitious emissions targets, including the legislated carbon budgets and net zero by 2050, as well as our delivery on emissions reductions, which go well beyond what any other major economy has achieved, all the while taking a pragmatic, proportionate and realistic approach to doing so, easing burdens on families and businesses.
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