Climate and Ecology Bill [HL]

1 Duty of the Secretary of State: climate and nature targets

(1)

The Secretary of State must achieve the objectives in subsection (2) (“the
objectives”).

(2)

The objectives are to ensure that the United Kingdom—

(a)

reduces its overall contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions to
net zero at a rate consistent with—

(i)

limiting the global mean temperature increase to 1.5 degrees
Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels as defined by the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; and

(ii)

fulfilling its obligations and commitments under the UNFCCC
and the Paris Agreement, taking into account the United
Kingdom's and other countries' common but differentiated
responsibilities, and respective capabilities, considering national
circumstances;

(‘the climate target’); and

(b)

halts and reverses its overall contribution to the degradation and loss
of nature in the United Kingdom and overseas by—

(i)

increasing the health, abundance, diversity and resilience of
species, populations, habitats and ecosystems so that by 2030,
and measured against a baseline of 2020, nature is visibly and
measurably on the path of recovery;

(ii)

fulfilling its obligations under the UNCBD and its protocols
and the commitments set out in the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature;
and

(iii)

following the principle of common but differentiated
responsibilities.

(‘the nature target’).

(3)

The Secretary of State may fulfil the duty in subsection (1) by acting on matters
of devolved legislative competence subject to section 5 .

2 Duty of the Secretary of State: climate and nature strategy

(1)

The Secretary of State must, within 12 months of the passing of this Act,
publish and lay before Parliament a strategy (‘the strategy’) to achieve the
objectives specified in section 1 .

(2)

The strategy must include annual interim targets consistent with the
achievement of the objectives and the Secretary of State must take all
reasonable steps to meet those annual interim targets.

(3)

The strategy must include measures that, subject to sections 3 and 4 , will
achieve the objectives specified in section 1 by—

(a)

limiting the United Kingdom’s total emissions of carbon dioxide to
no more than its proportionate share of the remaining global carbon
budget;

(b)

reducing emissions of carbon dioxide in respect of imports to the
United Kingdom, at the same percentage rate each year as the annual
reduction of the United Kingdom’s emissions of carbon dioxide
required pursuant to (a);

(c)

reducing the United Kingdom’s emissions of greenhouse gases other
than carbon dioxide at rates consistent with a proportionate United
Kingdom contribution to limiting global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius;

(d)

ensuring the end of the exploration, extraction, export and import of
fossil fuels by the United Kingdom as rapidly as possible;

(e)

ensuring that steps taken to mitigate emissions minimise damage to
ecosystems, food and water availability, and human health, as far as
possible;

(f)

restoring and expanding natural ecosystems, and enhancing the
management of cultivated ecosystems, to protect and enhance
biodiversity, ecological processes, and ecosystem service provision,
including climate change mitigation;

(g)

ensuring that all activities in the United Kingdom which affect the
health, abundance, diversity and resilience of species, populations and
ecosystems—

(i)

follow the Mitigation and Conservation Hierarchy, and

(ii)

prioritise avoidance of the loss of nature.

(h)

taking every possible step to avoid, where avoidance is not possible,
limit, and where limiting is not possible, restore or otherwise offset,
the adverse impacts overseas of United Kingdom-generated cycles of
consumption, trade, financing and production on ecosystems and
human health; including, but not limited to, the extraction of raw
materials, deforestation, land degradation, pollution and waste
production.

(4)

With respect to subsection (3) (a) , (b) and (c) , measures in the strategy must
seek to achieve the objectives by reducing the United Kingdom's gross
greenhouse gas emissions, and those in respect of imports to the United
Kingdom, as far and as rapidly as possible.

(5)

The strategy must—

(a)

in the opinion of the Secretary of State, be projected to have an overall
positive impact on—

(i)

local communities with a high deprivation rating according to
Government deprivation indices;

(ii)

young people; and

(iii)

people with protected characteristics under section 4 of the
Equality Act 2010;

(b)

set out how the requirements under paragraph (a) have been met; and

(c)

include financial support and retraining for people whose livelihoods
and jobs will be affected by the proposed measures—including those
measures that require transitioning out of industries characterised by
high emissions and high impacts on ecosystems.

(6)

The strategy may include measures in areas of devolved legislative competence
subject to section 5 .

3 Public involvement

(1)

The Secretary of State must, within three months of the passing of this Act,
procure, by open tender, an expert independent body to establish a Climate
and Nature Assembly (‘the Assembly’) comprising a representative sample
of the United Kingdom population.

(2)

The body appointed pursuant to subsection (1) must secure the establishment
of the Assembly within three months of appointment.

(3)

The Assembly must consider relevant expert advice and publish its
recommendations for measures to be included in the strategy.

(4)

Working together, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the Joint Nature
Conservation Committee (JNCC) must—

(a)

review the Assembly’s recommendations under subsection (3) and
relevant expert advice; and

(b)

publish a joint proposal for measures to be included in the strategy,
including all recommendations by the Assembly that have the support
of 66% or more of its members unless, in the opinion of either the
CCC or the JNCC, there are exceptional and compelling reasons, which
must be stated, not to implement those recommendations.

(5)

The Secretary of State must include in the strategy all recommendations by
the Assembly that have the support of 66% or more of its members, where
those recommendations are also jointly proposed by the CCC and the JNCC.

(6)

Subsection (5) does not apply where, in the opinion of the Secretary of State,
there are exceptional and compelling reasons, which must be stated in the
strategy, not to implement those recommendations.

4 Duties of the Committee on Climate Change and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee

(1)

The CCC and the JNCC must—

(a)

evaluate, monitor and report annually on the implementation of the
strategy and on the achievement of the interim targets;

(b)

undertake the duties referred to in sections 3 and 6 .

(2)

The CCC must recommend annual emissions budgets for each greenhouse
gas for the United Kingdom, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with a
view to the requirements of section 2 being met.

5 Approval by devolved legislatures

(1)

The targets in section 1 apply to matters of devolved legislative competence
if the condition in subsection (2) is met.

(2)

That condition is—

(a)

in relation to Scotland, that the Scottish Parliament has passed a motion
of the form “That this Parliament agrees to the climate and nature
targets in section 1 of the Climate and Ecology Act 2022”;

(b)

in relation to Wales, that Senedd Cymru has passed a motion of the
form “That the Senedd agrees to the climate and nature targets in
section 1 of the Climate and Ecology Act 2022”;

(c)

in relation to Northern Ireland, that the Northern Ireland Assembly
has passed a motion of the form “That this Assembly agrees to the
climate and nature targets in section 1 of the Climate and Ecology Act
2022”.

(3)

The strategy under subsection (2) may include measures in areas of devolved
legislative competene if the condition in subsection (4) is met.

(4)

That condition is—

(a)

in relation to matters within the legislative competene of the Scottish
Parliament, that the Scottish Parliament has passed a motion of the
form “That this Parliament agrees to the measures in the Climate and
Nature Strategy”;

(b)

in relation to matters within the legislative competence of Senedd
Cymru, that Senedd Cymru has passed a motion of the form “That
this Senedd agrees to the agrees to the measures in the Climate and
Nature Strategy”; and

(c)

in relation to matters within the legislative competence of the Northern
Ireland Assembly, that the Assembly has passed a motion of the form
“That this Assembly agrees to the measures in the Climate and Nature
Strategy”.

6 Acceptance and implementation of the strategy and any revisions

(1)

The Secretary of State must—

(a)

lay the strategy before the House of Commons; and

(b)

arrange for a Minister of the Crown to move a motion for resolution
of the House of Commons of the form in subsection (2) .

(2)

The form of the motion is “That this House approves the Climate and Nature
Strategy, laid before this House on [date], without amendment.”

(3)

The Secretary of State must implement the strategy, including—

(a)

any amendments made to the strategy in accordance with the
resolution of the House of Commons under subsection (2) ; and

(b)

any revisions made under subsection (5) .

(4)

The Secretary of State must report annually to Parliament on the
implementation of the strategy or any revisions thereto; and on progress
towards achieving the objectives and interim targets under sections 1 and 2 .

(5)

If, at any time, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, the CCC or the JNCC
based on up-to-date scientific evidence, or of the House of Commons expressed
by resolution, the measures in the strategy or the interim targets are unlikely
to achieve the objectives, the Secretary of State must revise the strategy, or
make a statement to the House of Commons explaining why a revision is not
necessary.

(6)

Whenever the strategy is revised under subsection (5) , the provisions of
subsections (3) and (4) apply.

7 Financial provisions

There is to be paid out of money provided by Parliament—

(a)

any expenditure incurred under or by virtue of this Act, including for
the implementation of the strategy; and

(b)

any increase attributable to this Act in the sums payable under any
other Act out of money so provided.

8 Interpretation

In this Act—

“
the United Kingdom’s total emissions of carbon dioxide” means (a) all
territorial emissions of carbon dioxide from the United Kingdom, and
(b) all emissions of carbon dioxide generated by the United Kingdom’s
share of international aviation and shipping, emitted between 2020
and 2050;

“
emissions of carbon dioxide in respect of imports to the United Kingdom” means emissions of carbon dioxide generated outside the
United Kingdom by the production of goods and services that are
imported to the United Kingdom;

“
remaining global carbon budget” means 400 billion tonnes of carbon
dioxide;

“
proportionate share of the remaining global carbon budget” means the
share of the remaining global carbon budget in proportion to the
United Kingdom’s share of the global population, averaged over the
period 2020 to 2050, using United Kingdom forecast population data
from the Office for National Statistics and global forecast population
data from Shared Socioeconomic Pathway 1;

“
greenhouse gas” has the same meaning as in section 92 of the Climate
Change Act 2008;

“
UNFCCC” means the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change which entered into force on 21 March 1994, and all subsequent
agreements and protocols arising from it;

“
the Paris Agreement” means the agreement within the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted on 12 December
2015;

“
nature” includes (a) the abundance, diversity and distribution of animal,
plant, fungal and microbial life (b) the extent and condition of habitats,
and (c) the health and integrity of ecosystems;

“
ecosystems” includes natural and managed ecosystems and the air, soils,
water and abundance and diversity of organisms of which they are
composed;

“
UNCBD and its protocols” means the United Nations Convention on
Biological Diversity, which entered into force on 29 December 1993,
and all subsequent agreements and protocols arising from it;

“
the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature” means the agreement of the United
Nations Summit on Biodiversity of 28 September 2020; and

“
the Mitigation and Conservation Hierarchy” means resolution 58 of the
World Conservation Congress, hosted by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature from 1 to 10 September 2016.

9 Extent, commencement and short title

(1)

This Act extends to England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

(2)

This Act comes into force on the day on which it is passed.

(3)

This Act may be cited as the Climate and Ecology Act 2022.