Britain’s Boris Johnson unveils plans for a ‘green industrial revolution’
By Karla Adam,
Kirsty Wigglesworth AP
LONDON — Boris Johnson unveiled on Wednesday plans for a “green industrial revolution” that he hopes will create a quarter of a million jobs and help Britain to drive its carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
Johnson, who is self-isolating after being exposed to a lawmaker who tested positive for coronavirus, announced a 10-point plan via news release and social media. The most eye-catching proposal, arguably, was a ban on new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, five years ahead of schedule.
Johnson, the leader of the right-of-center Conservative Party, wants Britain to play a global leadership role in the area of climate. Next year, Britain will host COP26, a major international climate summit in Glasgow, which was postponed by a year because of the pandemic.
Johnson referenced the summit when describing his recent phone call with president-elect Joe Biden. He said that the two spoke of the many areas that “united” Britain and the United States, including “above all, climate change. That was really interesting. He wants to join us next year in leading the world in getting global greenhouse emissions down, [at] the COP 26 in Glasgow.”
[Boris Johnson begins ‘year of climate action’ amid accusations he still doesn’t get it]
Johnson may also be hoping that a focus on its green agenda will reset an administration that’s struggling with the pandemic, difficult Brexit negotiations and infighting at the top of government that led to the departure of a top aide.
In the new plans, the British government said it would mobilize 12 billion pounds ($16 billion) of government money, which would help develop further nuclear and hydrogen power and dramatically expand Britain’s offshore wind power. Only 4 billion pounds ($5 billion) is new funding, however, and critics say it’s not nearly ambitious enough to meet the 2050 target. Last year, Britain became the first major economy to pass legislation that commits it to eliminating its contribution to climate change by 2050.
The new measures also include tangible changes to some people’s homes — replacing 600,000 gas boilers every year by 2028 with heat pumps that require less energy.
The government said that the new targets will “create and support” up to 250,000 jobs.
In an article written in the Financial Times, Johnson, no stranger to boosterism, says his plan will turn Britain into “the world’s number one centre for green technology and finance, creating the foundations for decades of economic growth.”
He implored fellow Britons to imagine a future where: “You cook breakfast using hydrogen power before getting in your electric car, having charged it overnight from batteries made in the Midlands. Around you the air is cleaner; trucks, trains, ships and planes run on hydrogen or synthetic fuel.”
He also says that Britain will become “the Saudi Arabia of wind” with “enough offshore capacity to power every home by 2030.”
Greenpeace UK praised the government for the phasing out of new petrol and diesel cars but said more can be done.
“This move will cut emissions, reduce air pollution and help create thousands of new jobs across the UK,” the environmental organization tweeted. “Still, so much more needs doing but this is a big step.”
Ed Miliband, a former climate change secretary and now the opposition Labour Party’s point person on business, said that plans and funding fell far short of what was needed. “We need a bold plan to tackle the jobs crisis and climate emergency and this shows we’re not going to get it from Boris Johnson,” he said. “Labour called for £30bn capital investment over 18 months to support 400,000 new low-carbon jobs. This is a poor imitation.”
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