The Know Daily - Wednesday 20 September 2023

_{Wednesday 20 September ∙ Read in 5m 28s ∙ Listening to ABBA}

Wild Atlantic salmon - which are protected by the US Endangered Species Act - are enjoying a resurgence in New England’s rivers. The fish had their most productive year in over a decade, with more than 1,500 counted in one river in Maine, suggesting that conservationists’ efforts are paying off swimmingly!

🪫 A net zero U-turn

Rishi Sunak is poised to water down some of the government’s key green commitments in a move designed to draw a dividing line with Labour before next year’s election.

Tell me more.
According to government leaks first reported last night, the PM is preparing to row back on several Conservative net zero policies. This includes moving the ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 to 2035 and weakening the phasing out of the installation of new gas boilers, which were meant to be banned from 2035.

The Times has also reported that Sunak is planning to ditch another policy that would have enforced tougher energy efficiency rules for landlords, penalising them for failing to upgrade their rental properties.

What has the government said?
After the news was revealed yesterday evening, Sunak released a statement acknowledging the reports. It confirmed that while the PM is still “committed to net zero by 2050”, he now plans to reach it “in a better, more proportionate way”.

Sunak added that he is putting “the long-term interests of our country before the short-term political needs of the moment”.

Speaking on the BBC’s Today programme this morning, Home Secretary Suella Braverman said she backed the move and praised the PM for “choosing to put bank balances first”.

And how have other people responded?
Labour’s Ed Miliband, the shadow climate secretary, described the news as a “complete farce”. “Thirteen years of failed energy policy has led to an energy bills crisis, weakened our energy security, lost jobs and failed on the climate crisis,” he added.

The move has also been criticised among sections of the Tories, with some sources telling The Times that abandoning green pledges “could cost the party at the next election”.

What next?
The PM is expected to confirm the policy shift in what The Guardian described as a “major speech” this Friday.

However, the paper has pointed out that any decision to water down green policies could be challenged in court, “as the government has a legal obligation to set out in detail how it will meet its net zero target by 2050”.

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