Elements of Net Zero Strategy are welcome but there is not enough urgency

The government has today published its long awaited Net Zero Strategy, setting out how it intends to get achieve its Net Zero goals.

The strategy commits to having a final funding decision made on building Sizewell C by the end of this parliament and to introducing legislation to allow the use of the Regulatory Asset Base model for funding new nuclear. It also commits to future nuclear projects but lacks detail in how or where these will be built.

Sue Ferns, Prospect senior deputy general secretary, said:

“This is a welcome announcement to accelerate the development of new nuclear energy generation, but we now need urgent support to turn these words into action.
“Confirmation of support for Sizewell C is an important first step but it is far from enough if we are going to meet our climate targets and replace the firm power capacity that is coming offline in the next few years.

“The ongoing energy crisis demonstrates our overreliance on imports when weather-dependent generation does not match demand. That is only going to get worse as coal and older nuclear plant comes offline.

“The most striking thing in this plan is the discrepancy between the urgency of the statements and the actual timescales set down. There is no reason we can’t immediately get moving on Sizewell C, introduce legislation for the Regulated Asset Base funding model, and start the ball rolling on all the other nuclear projects we will need going forward.

“The scale and urgency of the net zero challenge requires a clear and timely implementation strategy based on a whole systems approach. This also requires a comprehensive skills strategy to create and sustain good quality green jobs.”