« BackNews: UK Businesses Urge Government To Focus On Low-Carbon Economy

UK Businesses Urge Government To Focus On Low-Carbon Economy


As the world begins to reopen following the lockdowns as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, many are hoping that this will provide an opportunity for change in terms of how countries tackle the growing threat of climate change.

The Build Back Better movement is championing efforts around the world to develop more sustainable and environmentally friendly economies.

It recently shared a letter sent to the UK government and signed by 213 leading businesses, investors and business networks in the UK calling for politicians to set out a clear strategy to recover from the health crisis that puts the country’s wider social, climate and environmental goals at its heart.

The letter stated: “With the UK facing major economic and social concerns including the risk of high unemployment and rising regional inequality, we believe that an ambitious low-carbon growth and environmental improvement agenda can do a lot to address these concerns.”

It added that taking this approach would also “make the UK economy better prepared to deal with future shocks such as those related to climate change”.

Among the organisations supporting this approach and signing the letter are the UK Green Building Council, Business in the Community, Siemens, Asda, Sky and Mitsubishi.

They want the government to focus on the sectors of the economy that can deliver sustainable growth, while delivering employment and accelerating both the UK’s economic recovery and its decarbonisation.

Signatories of the letter also want a commitment from the government that it will create a plan to “drive investment in low-carbon innovation, infrastructure and industries”.

Non-executive chairman of EDF Energy Colin Matthews commented: “Prioritising investment in new low-carbon infrastructure and energy projects will unlock high-quality jobs and investment in towns and regions that have been hardest hit by the crisis.”

The We Mean Business Coalition has also set out a number of steps under its Build Back Better campaign that it wants governments to take, including advancing the delivery of 100 per cent renewable energy.

This will involve introducing policies and incentives, as well as funding projects that “accelerate the delivery of a just transition to economy-wide net-zero emissions by 2050 at the latest”.

Other recommendations from the coalition include supporting industry as it transitions to zero emissions and providing greater support for farmers to help them deliver nature-based climate solutions.

Ethical investment platform Abundance has recently launched the first of its investment opportunities under its own Build Back Better initiative. It has launched a new crown bond seeking to raise £2.65 million for Agrogen, a British waste management firm.

Agrogen intends to use the loan to make its anaerobic digestion (AD) process more sustainable and will use the finance to upgrade the technology at its plant that will enable it to process a wider variety of farm waste.

Co-founder and managing director of Abundance Bruce Davis described AD as the “unsung hero of the renewable energy sector” and noted that this initiative gives investors an opportunity to put their money into a “circular economy solution”.

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