Energy security is national security - and a bold Carbon Budget Seven plan can secure both

The UK Government has just announced the next step in its mission to meet the UK’s 2050 net zero target - an ~87% reduction in carbon emissions in 2038 - 2042 from 1990 levels.

As recent geopolitical events in the Middle East have shown, driving the UK away from fossil fuels is no longer just a tool to decarbonise the economy - it is vital to the UK’s future prosperity and national security.

“Recent global shocks have laid bare the real cost of the UK’s dependence on fossil fuels -not just for the climate, but for household bills, economic stability, and national security. The Climate Change Committee is clear: a single fossil fuel price spike could cost as much as reaching net zero altogether. The facts are no longer in question, and every delay only deepens our exposure to volatile global markets and drives up costs for households and businesses. Accelerating the shift of transport to clean, homegrown energy is not optional, it is essential to protecting the UK’s resilience and prosperity. Carbon Budget Seven must be the moment the Government acts with urgency and ends our reliance on unpredictable fossil fuels.” Anna Krajinska, T&E UK Director said.

To protect the UK from these unexpected and damaging fossil fuels reliance costs, we’re calling on the Government to make Carbon Budget Seven a secret weapon for national resilience:

• Due to the oil crisis, road users are facing high costs for petrol and diesel and daily travel costs are increasingly impacted by volatile geopolitics. Consumer interest in EVs is booming and EV drivers are four times less exposed to the oil crisis. Ensuring an ambitious and unchanged ZEV Mandate as part of the Government’s CB7 approach will ensure a continued increase in the supply of EVs, driving down upfront costs and protecting families from further price shocks.

• The logistics sector is equally exposed, with diesel prices already increasing by 41.4p/litre since the start of the Iran war. So far the Government has failed to put in place regulation to drive the supply of electric trucks leaving households exposed to the rising cost of goods. Now is the time for the Government to finally take leadership and introduce a ZEV mandate for trucks, driving down vehicle costs and increasing supply so that the logistics sector can benefit from the security and price stability of running on homegrown renewables and not imported volatile diesel.

• Shipping has also seen high premiums for marine fossil fuels with some companies having issued orders to reduce speed to compensate. Between 1 March and 20 March, global shipping companies paid an estimated £3.99 billion in additional fuel costs - with daily extra costs reaching £295 million. The Government needs to stop hiding behind the IMO and take leadership, securing the UK maritime sector by introducing a sustainable maritime fuel mandate to shift the sector away from fossil fuels and towards homegrown renewables.

• For aviation, the oil crisis is having a profound effect with significant jet fuel shortages and surging prices. Before the crisis, roughly one third of European jet fuel demand was met by directly importing refined jet fuel, with the Middle East as the main supplier. This shows the importance of shifting the sector to Sustainable Aviation Fuels, which means a robust and ambitious SAF Mandate and an effective Revenue Certainty Mechanism that needs to be introduced immediately to increase the domestic production of these vital fuels.

The Government’s announcement of the CB7 target is just the start of this process, and they will need to set out what policies will reach this target. We’re calling on the Government to step up and use CB7 to protect Britain’s energy and security interests into the future. We cannot afford to continue our reliance on volatile fossil fuels that are impacting the lives of ordinary people.