The Guardian view on the UK’s net zero targets: time to walk the walk

‘An effective ban on onshore wind is, absurdly, still largely in place after a recent public consultation.’ Wind turbines at Llandinam, Powys. Photograph: AFP/Getty

Last summer, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) delivered a 600-page assessment of the United Kingdom’s journey towards net zero targets. The scathing conclusions could be summed up in a single sentence: Westminster continues to talk the talk, but a lack of follow-through means the country is failing to walk the walk.

In too many areas, the CCC found, goals were being undermined by failures in delivery programmes. There was a “shocking gap”, it reported, in policymaking to drive better insulation of homes. Progress on reducing farming emissions had been “glacial”. The bald conclusion was that the “current strategy will not deliver net zero” by 2050, as legally required.