UK halfway to reaching net zero after Covid-19 spurs record emissions cuts

Cecilia Keating
clock • 3 min read

After reducing its emissions by 51 per cent over the last 30 years, the UK has another 30 to make the same reductions again and hit net zero, Carbon Brief reveals

Greenhouse gas emissions in the UK in 2020 fell to half the levels recorded in 1990 in the wake of the pandemic, meaning the nation is technically halfway to meeting its target of reaching net zero emissions...

To continue reading this article...

Join BusinessGreen

In just a few clicks you can start your free BusinessGreen Lite membership for 12 months, providing you access to:

  • Three complimentary articles per month covering the latest real-time news, analysis, and opinion from Europe’s leading source of information on the Green economy and business
  • Receive important and breaking news stories via our daily news alert
  • Our weekly newsletter with the best of the week’s green business news and analysis

Join now

 

Already a BusinessGreen member?

Login

More on Policy

'The Barbra Streisand effect': UK heat pump demand hits new heights in September

'The Barbra Streisand effect': UK heat pump demand hits new heights in September

September saw the highest ever number for grants issued in a single month through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, fresh figures show

clock 30 October 2026 • 4 min read
Is clean power by 2030 dead? And does it matter?

Is clean power by 2030 dead? And does it matter?

John Healey's Budget speech yesterday did not formally kill off the government's clean power by 2030 target - but it remains unclear at the time of writing whether or not it is officially still in place, with the Treasury having declined to respond on...

James Murray
clock 29 October 2026 • 4 min read
Budget 2026: All the green policies at a glance

Budget 2026: All the green policies at a glance

BusinessGreen's all-you-need-to-know guide to the UK government's Budget 2026 announcements for the green economy

Michael Holder
clock 28 October 2026 • 15 min read