Government's scorecard on combating climate change doesn't add up
As we look back on the past year and look forward to the next, there are clearly huge challenges for our economy. The housing market, consumer spending and economic growth look poised on the edge of a pretty steep drop, and there is a growing chance of a recession.
But Gordon Brown - and before him Tony Blair - have stressed that the biggest challenge of our time is the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Professor Nick Stern recommended in his report this year that rich countries start spending at least 1% of their gross domestic product to combat climate change. That's roughly £13bn a year. The United Nations has since gone further and talked of 1.6% of GDP to achieve an 80% reduction in greenhouse gases.
The government has committed Britain to a legally binding target to cut carbon emissions by 60% by 2050. This year the EU set a very demanding requirement that countries increase their share of energy produced from renewables such as wind, solar and biomass to 20% by 2020.
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