The UK Government has pledged to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – but getting to this target requires technological innovation in many areas.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), now Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), has estimated that half of all the carbon reductions needed to reach this 2050 target will need to come from technologies that are still in prototype phases. This includes technological developments such as the ability to capture carbon at a scale and improve our energy storage.
BEIS published its Net Zero Research and Innovation Framework in October 2021, outlining the crucial research and technologies needed to decarbonise the economy. It also identifies the main net zero innovation challenges, priorities and timescales for this research.
This inquiry by the Public Accounts Committee is based on an NAO investigation into Government support for Net Zero research and innovation. The Committee will question senior officials at the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero, HM Treasury and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on the government’s approach to investment in research and innovation to deliver its net zero targets.
If you have evidence on these issues, please submit it here by 23:59 on Thursday 1 June 2023.
Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere.