Secret documents obtained by the Observer revealed that Cabinet ministers have been warned by senior civil servants that they face court action because of their catastrophic failure to develop policies for tackling climate change.
The government is clearly far behind in outlining how it will meet its net zero targets and comply with legal obligations to rescue the world, according to senior mandarin briefings that were leaked.
According to the documents, Grant Shapps, the secretary of state for energy security and net zero, is facing an increasing “legal risk” as a result of the clear lack of policy because he is legally liable for failing to take action.
The environment secretary Thérèse Coffey will be under particular pressure as a result of the papers, which Defra officials distributed to other senior Whitehall figures.
The documents reveal that Coffey’s department is by far the biggest offender when it comes to failing to establish green policies, lagging a whopping 24% behind its statutory objective, while the transport department has a deficit that is well over 5%.
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The environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, who was recently jeered at a conference by farmers who are already very critical of the government’s agenda for agriculture post-Brexit, will be under particular pressure as a result of the papers, which Defra officials circulated to other senior Whitehall figures.
The documents show Coffey’s staff pleading with her to accept an enhanced climate plan for the agricultural industry within weeks, not only to fulfill a deadline but also in reaction to scathing criticism from the government advisers on the climate change committee (CCC).
According to the documents, “The CCC has been calling for Defra to publish a decarbonisation plan since 2018 … The CCC has also criticised the ‘glacial progress’ in reducing emissions from agriculture.”
“It is likely that if we do not commit to a plan in response to the CCC’s recommendations, we will be singled out for further scrutiny by the CCC and other stakeholders,” the documents added.
Story was adapted from The Guardian
