International: United Kingdom
Brexit could wreck green agenda, says UN
22 May 2018
The United Nations has warned the UK government that the country's reputation is at risk over plans that would significantly weaken protections for the environment after Brexit.
London considering car-free days
18 May 2018
London is considering introducing car-free days in an attempt to tackle the city’s air pollution crisis that experts say is responsible for thousands of early deaths each year.
GAS BYPASS: UK could go from coal to clean
17 May 2018
The UK has been told there's no need to build large gas-fired power stations to replace the coal plants that the government has pledged to switch off by 2025.
UK proposes new law to create Green Brexit
16 May 2018
The UK Government is seeking to reassure the public that environmental laws will not be watered down after the country’s planned departure from the European Union.
Lloyds Bank pumps £2b into green projects
16 May 2018
Lloyds Bank is making an extra £2 billion available to help UK businesses implement sustainability initiatives.
Green homes earn more mortgage money
15 May 2018
Borrowers in the UK will be able to take out a bigger mortgage when buying greener properties for the first time, under a pioneering scheme to encourage energy efficiency.
UK faces huge bill to get rid of North Sea oil
8 May 2018
The UK’s North Sea clean-up costs – the price to be paid for decommissioning its oil and gas industry – will probably more than double, a British group says.
Starbucks customers like reusable cups
30 Apr 2018
A survey in UK Starbucks stores shows that reusable cup usage has surged by 156 per cent since the intoduction of a 5p charge.
BP chief urges Cambridge not to divest
26 Apr 2018
BP chief executive Bob Dudley has come under fire from campaigners after he urged Cambridge University not to drop its fossil fuel investments.
Tidal power comes of age with Scottish project
19 Apr 2018
The potential for the tides to generate clean, reliable electricity has taken a significant step with the completion of a flagship project in Scottish waters.
UK seeks advice on strengthening climate goal
19 Apr 2018
The UK government has announced that it wants official advice on the “implications” of aligning its climate goals with the Paris Agreement.
Abandoned collieries could be key to heating homes
10 Apr 2018
Scientists are finalising plans to exploit the vast reservoir of warm water that fills a labyrinth of disused mines and porous rock layers underneath Glasgow.
Selfridges to cut single-use plastic carbonated drinks
10 Apr 2018
The world-renowned department store Selfridges is to ditch single-use plastic carbonated drinks.
The UK needs a more ambitious Climate Change Act
6 Apr 2018
The UK Climate Change Act is a pioneering and far-sighted piece of legislation, but it is time to ask whether the central ambition of reducing carbon emissions by at least 80 per cent from 1990 levels by 2050 is still adequate.
UK rejects plans for new coal mine
27 Mar 2018
The UK has decided to stop plans for a new opencast coal mine because it would “adversely impact upon measures to limit climate change”.
Oil threat looms over national park land
22 Mar 2018
More than 71,000 hectares of protected countryside, including national park land, in the south-east of England are at risk from a new wave of oil drilling.
Farmers to be given first targets on soil health
20 Mar 2018
A bill will be brought before the UK parliament this year mandating, for the first time, measures and targets to preserve and improve the health of the nation's soils.
Coffee cups and food packaging could face levy
16 Mar 2018
Single-useplastic items such as disposable coffee cups, takeaway boxes and polystyrene packaging could be hit with charges in the UK akin to the 5p levy on plastic bags.
False emissions ratings cost UK more than £2b a year
12 Mar 2018
False emissions ratings for cars based on lab tests have cost the UK more than £2bn a year in lost tax revenue, according to the Green party.
UK carbon emissions at lowest level since 1890
9 Mar 2018
Fresh analysis has highlighted the dramatic fall in carbon emissions within the UK, reaching a new low unseen in normal times for 128 years.
How Scotland plans to meet climate change targets
5 Mar 2018
The Scottish government's new climate plan includes measures to significantly cut emissions from transport, buildings and industry to meet its target of a 66 per cent cut in greenhouse gas emissions.
Lloyd’s under pressure to get out of coal
1 Mar 2018
Lloyd’s of London, is under increasing pressure to back away from supporting the coal industry.
Scotland aims to be renewables powerhouse
20 Feb 2018
Scotland is making progress towards becoming a world leader in renewable energy.
Ammonia emissions rise in Britain
20 Feb 2018
Emissions of ammonia have been on the rise in the UK even while the amount of other pollutants entering the atmosphere has fallen.
ROYAL BAN: Queen says no more plastic in my houses
15 Feb 2018
The Queen has banned plastic straws and bottles from being used across the various Royal homes and palaces.
Pedals pump half-a-billion pounds into Scotland
13 Feb 2018
Pedal power is worth more than half-a-billion pounds to the Scottish economy, a report shows.
'We don't want green finance, but for finance to be green'
9 Feb 2018
Industry and regulators should be given until 2020 to boost climate risk disclosure or face government intervention, Britain’s Commons Environmental Audit Committee has been told.
Edinburgh University divests from all fossil fuels
8 Feb 2018
The University of Edinburgh is dumping all its fossil fuel investments, making it the largest UK university endowment fund to be completely free of all coal, oil and gas holdings.
Carmakers could face prosecution in UK
5 Feb 2018
Carmakers who cheat emissions rules could face prosecution in the UK for deceiving environmental tests under new measures set to be introduced in the wake of the Volkswagen scandal.
Would you host a nuclear waste disposal plant for £1m a year?
31 Jan 2018
Communities around England, Wales and Northern Ireland will be offered £1m a year to volunteer to host an underground nuclear waste disposal facility.
Britain takes another look at personal carbon accounts
30 Jan 2018
The UK is getting serious about tackling collective individual behaviour which threatens the environment.
How planting trees changed lives in a former coal town
12 Dec 2017
The UK's National Forest has not only transformed an industrial landscape, it has given people a new sense of belonging and wellbeing, created jobs and boosted wildlife.
UK sees value in rebirth of the railways
11 Dec 2017
Proposals in the UK aimed at reversing decades of decline in the rail system, have been praised as the “rebirth of the railways”.
London's new e-cabs come with all the mod cons
8 Dec 2017
Wi-Fi, USB charging and even a sunroof are among the features of London's new six-seat, battery-powered cabs.
London mayor wants to put stopper on plastic water bottles
6 Dec 2017
London Mayor Sadiq Khan wants to see free water fountains and bottle refill stations across the city to reduce the use of plastic bottles.
BEAN BUSES: In London, it's wake up and smell the traffic
23 Nov 2017
Seeking to curb toxic diesel fumes, London transport officials are hunting for new sources of energy for buses. The latest idea? Coffee grounds.
Barclays issues €500m bond for 'green mortgages'
9 Nov 2017
UK banking giant Barclays has successfully issued a €500 million green bond - the first of its kind in the UK to use funds backed by domestic assets.
BBC apologises over interview with climate denier
26 Oct 2017
The BBC has apologised for an interview with climate change denier Lord Lawson after admitting it had breached its own editorial guidelines for allowing him to claim unchallenged that global temperatures have not risen in the past decade.
Dirty cars must pay for using London streets
25 Oct 2017
Drivers of the most polluting vehicles must from now on pay a daily charge of up to $NZ40 to drive into central London.
UK hints at e-bike subsidy to get people moving
24 Oct 2017
The UK government might consider providing subsidies for electric bicycles and electric cars as part of a concerted policy effort to get more people cycling.
UK climate masterplan – the grownups have finally won
16 Oct 2017
The UK Government’s clean growth strategy unequivocally states that tackling climate change and a prosperous economy go hand in hand.
Oxford city to ban cars in zero-emissions zone
13 Oct 2017
Polluting vehicles would be banned from Oxford city centre under plans to bring in what officials believe would be the world’s first zero emissions zone.
Scotland bans fracking after public protests
5 Oct 2017
The Scottish government has banned fracking after a consultation found overwhelming public opposition and little economic justification for the industry.
London could cut waste by 60% through circular model
25 Sep 2017
London could reduce its waste by 60 per cent by 2041 through a circular economy approach, says a new report.
May speaks out against Trump climate stance
22 Sep 2017
Theresa May has issued a veiled warning to Donald Trump, arguing that his plan to withdraw from the Paris climate change treaty ranks alongside North Korea’s nuclear missile tests as a threat to global prosperity and security.
London welcomes first plastics-free shop
20 Sep 2017
London has welcomed the opening of its first package-free food store opened In an effort to eliminate plastic pollution.
UK wind power prices reach lowest level
18 Sep 2017
Three new windfarms are to be built in the United Kingdom as offshore wind prices reach their lowest levels ever.
Scotland sets 2032 ban on new diesel and petrol cars
7 Sep 2017
Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has declared that the country will end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2032.
Parents face fines for driving children to school
7 Sep 2017
Parents across the UK face tough restrictions – and even fines – over driving their children to the school gates, in a push by councils on road safety and pollution.
Scotland claims tidal power world record
6 Sep 2017
August was a record-breaking month for Scottish tidal energy, after a power station managed to generate 700 megawatt-hours of electricity.
Battery subsidy scheme set for 'urgent' overhaul as costs run out of control
Tue 16 Dec 2025
Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen has announced big changes to the government's battery subsidy scheme amid claims most of its $2.3 billion budget has been spent in just six months.
EPA erases references to human-caused climate change from websites
Today 12:30pm
EPA has scrubbed references to people’s contribution to rising temperatures from some of its climate change webpages.
Verra cancels four tree planting projects in China. And starts reviews of 45 more projects
Tue 16 Dec 2025
“Multiple carbon projects in China are facing serious allegations regarding the authenticity of government approval documents."
France updates its 2050 carbon neutrality roadmap
Wed 17 Dec 2025
To mark the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, France released a revamped climate plan promising to phase out oil and gas and sharply increase electricity use.
The ecological havens flourishing beneath power lines
Today 12:30pm
Initiatives to foster native wildflowers, grasses and shrubs are turning utility corridors into wildlife corridors.
‘Not normal’: Climate crisis supercharged deadly monsoon floods in Asia
12 Dec 2025
Cyclones like those in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Malaysia that killed 1,750 are ‘alarming new reality’.
Pacific fisheries summit gives a boost to albacore and seabirds
Today 12:30pm
Much of the world’s albacore tuna catch, which usually ends up in a can, comes from the southwestern Pacific Ocean, where fishery managers just passed a new set of conservation rules.
Arctic endured year of record heat as climate scientists warn of ‘winter being redefined’
Thu 18 Dec 2025
Region known as ‘world’s refrigerator’ is heating up as much as four times as quickly as global average, Noaa experts say.
Are rainforests now a cause of, rather than the answer to, climate change?
Mon 15 Dec 2025
A new study finds that Africa’s forests, responsible for one-fifth of global carbon removal, are beginning to generate carbon as the result of human activity.
Thousands of climate disasters are not included in official reports from Amazonian countries
12 Dec 2025
More than 12,500 extreme weather events impacted the Amazon and its population in 10 years, but countries have not generated enough information about it, according to a new scientific study.
UN environment report 'hijacked' by US and others over fossil fuels, top scientist says
11 Dec 2025
A key UN report on the state of the global environment has been "hijacked" by the United States and other countries who were unwilling to go along with the scientific findings, the co-chair has told the BBC.
