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Carbon Neutral Roadmap scrutinised

​The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel has published its report examining the Government's draft Carbon Neutral Roadmap. Having undertaken a high-level analysis of the Roadmap's five strategic policies, carbon reduction policies, and its long-term governance and oversight, the report outlines 29 key findings, nine recommendations and one amendment.

Although the first delivery stage of the Carbon Neutral Roadmap will be delivered through the £23 million available funding within the Climate Emergency Fund, the Panel found that the Government's long-term financing strategy must address the challenge of acquiring substantial funds to meet its net-zero target by 2050. In addition, further carbon reduction policies will need to be developed between now and 2050 to facilitate the Island's path to net-zero, which will require further expert input as well as civic and stakeholder engagement.

The Panel is concerned that there is no formal framework proposed for independent, scientific oversight and governance, despite this being considered best practice across the UK and Europe. As a result, it has lodged an amendment to establish an independent, scientific climate council which will keep the Government on track to meet its climate objectives.

In examining the four categories of carbon reduction policies to be delivered between 2022-25, the Panel has highlighted concerns about the skills gap in areas related to the delivery of the carbon reduction policies; the challenge in ensuring that Islanders are not disproportionately impacted by the policies; and the urgent need to ensure that all Government departments have capacity and resourcing to effectively deliver these policies. The Panel is satisfied, however, with how the Citizens' Assembly on Climate Change's recommendations have fed into the development of policy and how the Government has outlined its reasoning for either rejecting or deferring policies as future objectives.

Connétable Mike Jackson, Chair of The Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel, commented: "We have concluded that the Government needs to ensure that there is an effective process in place for longer-term governance, oversight, scientific input, monitoring, and reporting to appropriately inform and oversee the process going forward. Amongst the number of key recommendations outlined in our report, our amendment seeks to address the absence of a framework for long-term governance and oversight through the establishment of an independent, scientific climate council, and we hope that, if approved by the States Assembly, this is set into motion before the new Government term of office begins."