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Leaving the EU: implications for UK climate policy

6 July 2016

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The Energy and Climate Change Committee is launching an inquiry exploring the implications for UK climate policy of leaving the European Union.

The UK's climate-change agenda has been driven by a mixture of national and international policies. Nationally, the Climate Change Act 2008 sets the UK decarbonisation agenda up to 2050. On the international stage, the UK currently negotiates as part of the EU bloc. The EU 2030 target—the EU's proposed contribution at the recent COP21 climate change conference in Paris—was agreed by Member States in October 2014.

The UK's participation in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, which requires companies to purchase permits to emit greenhouse gases, will now be subject to negotiation. Withdrawal from the EU raises questions as to the UK's position with respect to existing EU pledges and policies, and its future interaction with the EU bloc to fight climate change.

Through this inquiry, the Committee aims to understand the implications of the UK's departure from the EU on the UK's climate-change commitments and ambitions, and determine which climate policy areas will need to be addressed during the UK's exit negotiations. It seeks guidance on an appropriate timeline for these developments.

Send a written submission

The Committee invites responses addressing some, or all, of the following questions in no more than 3,000 words:

  • What role has the UK played within the EU in terms of driving the bloc's international climate change ambitions?
  • What should be the Government's priorities on the EU Emissions Trading System when negotiating the UK's exit from the EU? What would a successful negotiation outcome look like?
  • What are the implications of the UK's exit from the EU on both the UK's and the EU's COP21 pledges? What will be the UK's future role within the United Nations climate change processes?
  • What should be the Government's priorities in deciding which EU-led climate policies and legislation to retain?

Written submission deadline

The deadline for written submissions is Monday 22 August 2016

Send a written submission to the Energy and Climate Change Committee's Leaving the EU: implications for UK climate policy inquiry

Contact the Committee

You can tweet @CommonsECC about the inquiry using the hashtag #ClimatePostEU

Further information

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