International: United Kingdom
Factcheck: Why Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch is wrong about UK's net-zero goal
Thu 20 Mar 2025
The leader of the opposition Conservative party, Kemi Badenoch, has shattered the political consensus on climate change in a speech attacking the UK's net-zero by 2050 target.
Conservative party to ditch commitment to net zero in UK by 2050
Wed 19 Mar 2025
Kemi Badenoch is dropping her party's commitment to reaching net zero by 2050, as she launches the Conservatives' widest policy review in a generation.
UK carbon prices surge as minister talks about EU market linkage
14 Mar 2025
UK carbon futures jumped on Wednesday after a Treasury minister said the government would consider linking the country's emissions market to the European Union's system.
Dramatic fall in London's levels of deadly pollutants after low emissions zone expansion
10 Mar 2025
People in the UK capital are breathing much cleaner air, with significant improvements in the city's most deprived areas.
UK government announces plans to axe oil and gas windfall tax in 2030
10 Mar 2025
The Government has announced plans to end a windfall tax on oil and gas profits in 2030 as it launches a consultation on the future of the North Sea energy sector.
UK: Reducing emissions 87% by 2040 could cut household costs
4 Mar 2025
The UK should cut its emissions to 87% below 1990 levels by 2040 under its seventh five-yearly "carbon budget", according to official advice from the Climate Change Committee (CCC).
Britain's net zero economy 'booming'
25 Feb 2025
Green sector growing at triple the rate of the UK economy, providing high-wage jobs and increasing energy security.
The Tories set the UK net zero target. Now they are dumping it
24 Feb 2025
The 2050 goal "leaves us economically worse off," Conservative energy chief Andrew Bowie said.
'I'm not a scientist': Net Zero opponent Nigel Farage admits climate ignorance
21 Feb 2025
The Reform UK leader reiterated false climate claims at Jordan Peterson's Alliance for Responsible Citizenship event in London.
Bison are bringing back biodiversity to Britain
21 Feb 2025
In just a few years, the only free-roaming bison herd in the U.K. has already made a tangible difference in the surrounding ecosystem.
There isn't enough 'sustainable' aviation fuel to make a dent in our emissions - and there won't be for years
13 Feb 2025
Burning SAF actually emits a similar amount of CO2 to fossil jet fuel. Most emissions 'savings' come from how we account for the waste and renewable energy that is used to produce it.
UK halves subsidies for wood-burning power plant
12 Feb 2025
The UK government has halved subsidies for the Drax power station, which was converted from burning coal to wood biomass. The North Yorkshire power plant has also been ordered it to use 100% sustainable wood, following criticism for burning wood pellets sourced from US and Canadian forests.
Green campaigners fear UK to renew subsidies to Drax power station
10 Feb 2025
Green campaigners fear ministers are poised to award billions of pounds in fresh subsidies to Drax power station, despite strong concerns that burning trees to produce electricity is bad for the environment.
Nine percent of England's farmland needs to be converted into wildlife habitats and forests
5 Feb 2025
Roughly nine percent of England's farmland needs to be converted into habitats for wildlife and forest by 2050 in order to meet the country's nature and net-zero goals, according to a consultation launched by Steve Reed, the United Kingdom's environment secretary.
In historic win, court rules against UK's Rosebank oilfield over climate impacts
3 Feb 2025
The decision by the previous Conservative government in the United Kingdom to approve the giant Rosebank oilfield off Shetland was ruled unlawful by an Edinburgh court on Thursday.
UK drops climate and nature bill
31 Jan 2025
In dropping the bill, UK Labour ministers avoided an internal party row by promising potential rebels supporting the bill they would have input into environmental legislation.
The bitter final showdown over British coal, as sun sets on ‘dirtiest fuel’
20 Dec 2024
The county of Cumbria in Northern England has become the battleground for a final war, which is raging over plans to build a new coal mine.
How the UK plans to reach clean power by 2030
19 Dec 2024
The UK government has set out an “action plan” for reaching its target of clean power by 2030, which it describes as “the most ambitious reforms to our energy system in generations”.
Government unveils new powers to approve onshore wind farms
16 Dec 2024
The government has unveiled plans to give ministers the final say on approving large onshore wind farms rather than leaving decisions to local councils, where opposition has often been fierce.
UK 'not ready' for extreme weather
10 Dec 2024
The government is "not ready" for the sort of extreme weather brought by Storm Darragh, the new head of the Climate Change Committee has warned.
Oil and gas investments of Donald Trump’s new UK ambassador
9 Dec 2024
Campaigners warn that the UK will face “pressure from American fossil fuel interests” to slow its energy transition.
Burping cows, Bovaer and boycotts: The anti-methane additive that’s taking social media by storm
5 Dec 2024
UK shoppers have threatened to boycott supermarkets Tesco, Aldi and Morrisons over a ‘miracle’ methane-busting additive trial.
We have officially advised our university to ditch carbon offsets – and focus on cutting emissions
3 Dec 2024
Some would say carbon offsetting offers us a way out. At the University of Exeter we have explored the role of carbon offsets in the university’s very ambitious target of net zero by 2030.
Clean-up continues for areas hit by Storm Bert
28 Nov 2024
Heavy rain and high winds caused widespread disruption across Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire, with damage to homes, shops and roads.
Ford cuts jobs claiming weak demand for electric cars
22 Nov 2024
The company said it had to act because of difficult trading conditions, including intense competition and weak demand for electric vehicles.
UK unveils principles for voluntary market in nature credits
15 Nov 2024
The UK is setting out its own principles for the voluntary market for nature credits, representing a vote of confidence in a largely experimental financial product that’s intended to protect biodiversity.
Scotland passes climate change legislation
7 Nov 2024
Scotland has officially scrapped annual climate targets as well as its 2030 and 2040 interim targets, but is still aiming to reach net-zero by 2045.
COP29: What is the ‘new collective quantified goal’ on climate finance?
6 Nov 2024
As nations assemble at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, one issue is expected to dominate the summit: climate finance.
UK’s next Paris pledge should commit to ‘81% emissions cut by 2035’: govt advisors
29 Oct 2024
The UK should make an international pledge to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 81% below 1990 levels by 2035, according to the government’s advisory Climate Change Committee.
Cities face ‘severe degradation’ without meaningful climate action, warn experts
23 Oct 2024
Cities that fail to take meaningful climate action face a future of severe degradation with infrastructure collapse and environmental deterioration, climate and health experts warn.
Will carbon capture help the UK tackle climate change?
8 Oct 2024
There is a lot of rousing rhetoric today about carbon capture, following the government’s pledge of £21.7bn of public funds over the next 25 years to help kick-start the industry in the UK.
Climate scientists call on UK govt to pause £1bn plans for carbon capture
3 Oct 2024
Leading climate scientists are urging the government to pause plans for a billion pound investment in “green technologies” they say are unproven and would make it harder for the UK to reach its net zero targets.
UK's last coal-fired power station set to close
30 Sep 2024
The closure of the UK's last coal-fired power station has been described by officials as a "tremendously important milestone" in energy production.
Surprise benefit of London's fines for high-polluting cars: More active kids
23 Sep 2024
Four in 10 London children stopped driving and started walking to school a year after the city's clean air zone went into effect.
Climate a more fundamental threat than terror: UK foreign secretary
19 Sep 2024
The United Kingdom's foreign secretary has said climate change is a more urgent threat than terrorism or Putin.
High Court rejects the UK’s first new coal mine in 30 years
18 Sep 2024
A judge on Friday rejected plans for the United Kingdom’s first new coal mine in three decades, delivering a victory for climate groups who challenged the project’s claim it would have zero impact on global emissions.
How farms are using 'magic dust' to capture carbon
16 Sep 2024
Scottish farmers are using crushed basalt to both capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and to help crops grow.
UK farming's 'net zero' climate target in doubt
12 Sep 2024
Ambitious plans to make farming ‘net zero’ by 2040 - 10 years ahead of the UK’s legally-binding national target – may not be achieved, the National Farmers' Union (NFU) has told the BBC.
UK’s methane hotspots include landfills and last coalmine
5 Sep 2024
Greenpeace urges UK’s Labour to ‘fulfil international obligations’ as critics question accuracy of official data.
Renewable energy auction secures enough power for 11m UK homes
4 Sep 2024
Great Britain’s renewable energy auction has secured enough new clean electricity projects to power 11m UK homes after the Labour government made record funding available to suppliers.
Green groups call on UK govt to stop subsidies for biomass plant
2 Sep 2024
More than 40 groups are calling on the government to scrap plans to pay billions in subsidies to the Drax biomass power plant, which was recently revealed as the country's worst carbon emitter.
UK could approve 13 new oil and gas projects despite North Sea pledge
13 Aug 2024
The UK government could approve 13 new oil and gas projects in the North Sea, with the fuel produced emitting 350m tonnes of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2e) if burned.
How a livestock industry lobbying campaign is turning Europe against lab-grown meat
2 Aug 2024
Last month the UK became the first country in Europe to approve the sale of meat grown in a laboratory, giving the green light to a pet food made of cell-cultivated chicken.
UK’s Labour will honour pledge of £11.6bn in overseas climate aid
30 Jul 2024
Labour will honour a pledge of £11.6bn in overseas aid for the climate crisis, the energy secretary, Ed Miliband, told an unusual meeting of COP presidents past and present.
Landmark lawsuit challenges Britain’s climate change adaptation plan
26 Jul 2024
In a landmark climate case, Friends of the Earth and two people whose lives have been severely affected by the changing climate are suing the government of the United Kingdom over its failure to safeguard people, property and infrastructure against foreseeable effects of the climate crisis.
UK first European country to approve lab-grown meat, starting with pet food
22 Jul 2024
Lab-grown pet food is to hit UK shelves as Britain becomes the first country in Europe to approve cultivated meat.
UK supermarkets to trial methane-reducing feed supplement for dairy cows
19 Jul 2024
UK supermarket chain Tesco has announced it will trial a methane-reducing feed supplement for dairy cows as part of an initiative to cut its carbon footprint.
From green energy to rivers, environment at heart of nine plans in King’s speech
19 Jul 2024
The UK's new Labour government recognises the ‘urgency of climate challenge’ but also presents measures as way to also cut the cost of living.
Preparing London for climate impacts is ‘non-negotiable,’ landmark review warns
18 Jul 2024
The government has been warned that preparing London for climate change is “non-negotiable” as a landmark review of the capital’s climate resilience is published.
New UK govt lifts ‘absurd’ ban on onshore windfarms
10 Jul 2024
The de facto ban on new onshore windfarms has been dropped by the Labour government, to the delight of environmentalists and energy experts.
$800m pledge keeps Australia's green hydrogen dream alive
Today 11:00am
The Albanese Labor government has pledged more than $800 million in production incentives to a green hydrogen development in remote Western Australia, defying mounting scepticism over the future of the country's green fuel industry.
Trump is tackling every 'emergency' except the important one: climate change
Today 11:00am
To hear President Trump describe it, the U.S. is beset by emergencies. We allegedly have an energy emergency, a government waste emergency and a foreign trade emergency.
China's BYD launches EV charging system it says works nearly as fast as a fill up
Wed 19 Mar 2025
China's energy and auto giant BYD has announced an ultra fast EV charging system that it says is nearly as quick as a fill up at the pumps.
Danish investment firm raises record EU12 billion for energy transition infrastructure fund
Wed 19 Mar 2025
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners will invest primarily in large-scale renewable energy projects, including wind, solar PV, and battery storage in low-risk OECD markets across North America, Western Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
Canada: Carney kills consumer carbon tax in first move as prime minister
Tue 18 Mar 2025
Prime Minister Mark Carney wasted little time in removing a potent point of attack for the Conservatives in recent years: the consumer carbon tax.
Why action on extreme heat in Indian cities is falling short
Today 11:00am
Local governments face the difficult task of preparing communities and infrastructure for a warmer world - all while urbanisation accelerates and extreme weather becomes more frequent and intense.
Nauru sells citizenship to help fund relocations as sea levels rise
27 Feb 2025
A new 'golden passport' scheme aims to raise funds to relocate people inland as climate change raises sea levels.
Global sea ice levels just hit a new record low
10 Mar 2025
Sea ice cover in both the Antarctic and Arctic remained far below average throughout February as global average temperatures linger near record highs.
How much do rich nations owe Africa for climate damage?
27 Feb 2025
Wealthy nations owe African countries some 50 times more for climate damage than the debt Africa owes them, ActionAid report says.
Peruvian farmer goes head to head with German energy giant in landmark climate case
Wed 19 Mar 2025
A landmark climate lawsuit opens in a German court Monday, as a Peruvian farmer sues a German energy giant over the threat to his home from a mountain lake overflowing with glacier meltwater.
COP29 chief exec filmed promoting fossil fuel deals
11 Nov 2024
A senior official at COP29 climate change conference in Azerbaijan appears to have used his role to arrange a meeting to discuss potential fossil fuel deals.
