UK Needs £30bn More to Aid Green Recovery from Coronavirus

A new cross-party commission is calling for an extra £30bn a year to be invested in the green recovery from COVID-19.

The additional funds are needed to stimulate the economy post-lockdown by creating jobs in the green sector, whilst helping the country achieve its climate goals. The commission is also advising the government to make a down payment of £5bn into a ‘just transition fund’ that would help to give support to the areas most affected by the shift to greener sources of energy.

A 96-page report was revealed by the environmental justice commission - made up of business executives, climate activists, union leaders, and members of the Institute for Public Policy Research, as well as MPs. The paper calls for greater measures to battle the climate crisis whilst rebuilding the economy.

The commission advises the government to set ambitious emission reduction goals for 2030, including embedded carbon from goods that have been imported. The authors believe that this would help to make manufacturers in Britain more competitive.

The head of the environmental justice commission, Luke Murphy, hoped that ministers would follow the advice in the report.

“We know this fits with the government agenda. And officials are looking at green recovery,” said Murphy . “This goes beyond climate and nature. It must be a wholesale change of the economy that is also good for jobs and business. It is a positive vision of the kind of society we could create.”

Ed Miliband, also called for the government to take on the advice of the report: “This important report shows why a green recovery is essential for jobs, tackling the climate crisis and improving quality of life,” said Miliband. “There is real urgency for the government to respond and rise to this moment.”

MPs on the commission said that the current economic model was failing the majority of the population, and that there was an opportunity to decarbonise the economy.

“We can build back better – but only if we embed an agenda of rapid decarbonisation within a broader social and economic justice agenda, and ensure that those communities most affected by change have the power to lead and shape it,” said the Green party MP Caroline Lucas.

Former Conservative MP Laura Sandys, said the UK has a ‘tantalising and enticing prospect’ of having better lives - including warmer homes and cleaner air.

“A new and green economy that is fit for the future is a real possibility if only we can grasp it quickly,” said Sandys.