UK emissions would rise under Tory energy plan, Coutinho says

"In a BBC interview, Coutinho defended her party's pledge to axe the law that legally requires the UK government to reduce emissions to net zero by 2050. Coutinho argued net zero had become a "religion" that had increased electricity costs and made climate change "worse" by exporting emissions abroad. She said a Conservative government would be focused on lowering energy bills and expanding the UK's oil and gas sector in the North Sea."

"When asked if she accepted emissions would go up under this plan, Coutinho said: "So emissions would go up domestically but I would argue not necessarily globally. "And this is the problem that we've got. The Climate Change Act is specifically focused on domestic emissions." The UK's legally binding targets are set on the basis of emissions within the country's territorial borders. That means emissions associated with imports to the UK, such as gas, steel or cement from abroad, are not taken into account."

Claire Coutinho said repealing net zero policies would increase the UK's domestic carbon emissions while arguing that global emissions might not rise in the same way. The Conservatives plan to repeal the Climate Change Act 2008, remove carbon taxes on electricity generation and cut a renewables funding scheme to lower energy bills and boost the North Sea oil and gas sector. Coutinho described net zero as a "religion" that raised electricity costs and exported emissions abroad. UK legally binding targets cover emissions within territorial borders and exclude imports such as gas, steel and cement. The Conservatives have not specified how they would address emissions beyond the UK's borders.

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