Welsh and Scottish ministers call for climate summit after Prime Minister delays net zero pledges

The Welsh Minister for Climate Change has called for a meeting with the Prime Minister after he announced delays to net-zero targets.

Julie James and her Scottish counterpart, Mairi McAllan, wrote to Micheal Gove, who is the UK minister responsible for intergovernmental relations.

In a letter, they say that there was "no prior engagement" with the devolved administrations prior to Rishi Sunak's announcement.

The letter said: “Despite the far-reaching implications of the announcements made – with substantial changes in policy that will impact progress in delivering net zero and have profoundly negative implications for the environment and economy across the UK and further affect the UK’s international reputation – there was no prior engagement with the devolved governments.

“Given that delivery of the climate ambitions of the four nations of the UK are intrinsically linked, this is deeply unsatisfactory.

“In addition, almost a week later, it is hugely frustrating that the UK Government has not provided the level of detail required by such significant announcements.

“We would urge you to provide this immediately to enable devolved governments to fully assess the implications.”

A spokesman for the UK Government said: “The UK has already over performed against our previous targets and we’ve cut emissions faster than any other G7 country.

“We are adopting a fairer and more pragmatic approach to meeting net zero that eases the burdens on working people.

“We work closely with the devolved governments to deliver net zero and energy security, including through the inter-ministerial group for net zero, energy and climate change.

“We will continue to use this and other forums to work together to deliver for people across the UK.”

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