UK Inquiry Tracker

The Seventh Carbon Budget

Environmental Audit Committee Open Inquiry

Opened: 23 Sep 2025 Parliament page

This Environmental Audit Committee inquiry will examine the Climate Change Committee's advice on the Seventh Carbon Budget. It will consider the assumptions and costs underpinning the CCC’s recommendations, explore the balance between emerging and established technologies, the policy choices facing Government, and the potential impacts on households, businesses and the … Read more

27 Recommendations

13 Conclusions

1 Report

3 Oral sessions

4 Letters

3 Events

Activity timeline 9 events

23 Jun
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Minister of Climate relating to The Seventh Carbon Budget, 22 June

11 Jun
2026

Report published

1st Special Report - The Seventh Carbon Budget: Government Response

4 Mar
2026

Report published

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Budget

11 Feb
2026

Correspondence

Letter to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero relating to data centres and the Carbon Budget, 11 January

11 Feb
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Chair of the Climate Change Committee, Nigel Topping CMG, relating to Oral Evidence given to the Environmental Audit Commit…

7 Jan
2026

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

3 Dec
2025

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

12 Nov
2025

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

12 Nov
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero relating to the Government’s Plan for meeting Carbon Budgets 4-6, 29 …

Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions

7 Jan 2026

View on parliament.uk

Emma Pinchbeck · Climate Change Committee Nigel Topping · Climate Change Committee Polly Cook · Leeds City Council Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh MBE · Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations Toby Park · Behavioural Insights Team

3 Dec 2025

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Caroline Bragg · Association for Decentralised Energy Claire Dykta · National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) Dr Edmund Hughes · Green Marine Associates Gareth Stace · UK Steel Jonathon Counsell · International Airlines Group Rt Hon Chris Huhne · Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association Tanya Sinclair · Electric Vehicles UK Victoria Whitehouse · UKRI Industrial Decarbonisation Challenge

12 Nov 2025

View on parliament.uk

Mike Childs · Friends of the Earth Professor Joeri Rogelj · Imperial College Business School and Grantham Institute – Climate Change and Environment Professor Michael Grubb · UCL Sam Hunter Jones · ClientEarth Shaun Spiers · Green Alliance

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Budget	HC 1327	4 Mar 2026	40	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

12 results

2 Conclusion Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

As the ‘low hanging fruit’ of decarbonisation has largely been achieved, delivery risk increases materially...

As the ‘low hanging fruit’ of decarbonisation has largely been achieved, delivery risk increases materially under the Seventh Carbon Budget, at the same time as delivery options are reduced (as represented by the CCC’s decision to produce a single balanced … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the Committee's concerns about delivery risk and states that these elements will be carefully considered during the development of the delivery plan for the seventh carbon budget, in line with existing statutory duties and risk review processes.

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4 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

The Government should consider additional measures that offer an opportunity to provide resilience and headroom...

The Government should consider additional measures that offer an opportunity to provide resilience and headroom against delivery risk, without damaging public consent for the measures. (Recommendation, Paragraph 33)

Government Response

The government states that the elements of the recommendation, including contingency planning and policy instruments, will be "considered carefully" as it develops the delivery plan for the seventh carbon budget. It also notes that many of these are already under consideration and delivery risks are regularly reviewed.

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7 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

The Government must make sure its cross-departmental arrangements offer the clarity, authority and consistency required...

The Government must make sure its cross-departmental arrangements offer the clarity, authority and consistency required to deliver the Seventh Carbon Budget. As emissions reductions must accelerate sharply in the 2030s, delivery will depend on sustained, coordinated action across multiple departments … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the importance of strong cross-government coordination and states that existing frameworks and central leadership are in place, also committing to carefully consider the Committee’s recommendations for strengthening cross-government delivery when developing the CB7 plan.

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9 Conclusion Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

Public perceptions are shaped not by ministerial statements alone, but by the cumulative impact of...

Public perceptions are shaped not by ministerial statements alone, but by the cumulative impact of decisions taken across Government. Where policy choices in areas such as transport, buildings and infrastructure cut across climate objectives and are not aligned, they signal … Read more

Government Response

The government recognises the importance of strong cross-government coordination, stating that decarbonisation impacts are already considered in decisions and a robust framework is in place. It will publish a delivery plan for CB7 and will carefully consider the Committee’s recommendations for strengthening cross-government delivery.

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11 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

DESNZ should set out a clear cross-sector prioritisation framework within the Seventh Carbon Budget Delivery...

DESNZ should set out a clear cross-sector prioritisation framework within the Seventh Carbon Budget Delivery Plan, explaining how limited low- carbon resources, including clean electricity, network capacity, sustainable feedstocks and land, will be allocated between competing demands. This framework should … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the importance of cross-government coordination and will publish a delivery plan for the seventh carbon budget, stating they will carefully consider the Committee's recommendations for strengthening delivery during its development.

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12 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

DESNZ Ministers should provide visible cross-government leadership by setting out, in a single, authoritative statement...

DESNZ Ministers should provide visible cross-government leadership by setting out, in a single, authoritative statement within our recommended indicative delivery framework, how departmental policies collectively support delivery of the Seventh Carbon Budget. This should include clear objectives, indicative timelines and … Read more

Government Response

The government recognises the importance of cross-government coordination, states that the Prime Minister and Chancellor support DESNZ's role, and will publish a statutory delivery plan for the Seventh Carbon Budget. It will carefully consider the Committee’s specific recommendations for strengthening cross-government delivery when developing this plan.

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13 Conclusion Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

Delivery of the Seventh Carbon Budget will depend on major cross-sector changes in infrastructure, technology,...

Delivery of the Seventh Carbon Budget will depend on major cross-sector changes in infrastructure, technology, and behaviour, many of which must be secured well before the 2038–2042 period begins. These changes will not occur automatically in response to ambition alone. … Read more

Government Response

The government notes the importance of the concerns raised, stating that a delivery plan for the seventh carbon budget will be developed through a cross-government process after the budget is set, and confirms that the Committee's suggestions will be carefully considered during this development.

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14 Conclusion Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

Delivery risk is particularly acute in sectors that rely on technologies not yet available at...

Delivery risk is particularly acute in sectors that rely on technologies not yet available at scale and subject to significant cost, supply, and investment uncertainty. While policy frameworks exist in principle, they do not yet provide a sufficiently credible or … Read more

Government Response

The government acknowledges the committee’s suggestions regarding delivery risks and the need for clearer plans, stating that elements such as policy instruments and infrastructure readiness will be considered carefully during the development of the Carbon Budget 7 delivery plan.

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28 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

Behaviour change should not be treated as an adjunct to technology deployment or as a...

Behaviour change should not be treated as an adjunct to technology deployment or as a matter of individual responsibility alone. Delivery planning should make full and explicit use of policy levers to shape prices, incentives, defaults, infrastructure and markets, so … Read more

Government Response

The government states that co-benefits guide its decarbonisation approach and it is pursuing policies for tangible improvements. It commits to ongoing inclusive and participatory engagement, launching an annual 'Energising Britain' event and creating a Youth Climate and Nature Panel, but does not detail specific new policy levers or a structured place-based approach for behaviour change.

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35 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

The Government should set out its public participation approach for the Seventh Carbon Budget as...

The Government should set out its public participation approach for the Seventh Carbon Budget as a clear, resourced programme within the Seventh Carbon Budget Delivery Plan. This should focus on engagement, rather than just communications, and should: 64 • embed … Read more

Government Response

The government highlights its focus on co-benefits and states a commitment to ongoing inclusive and participatory approaches, announcing a new annual 'Energising Britain' event in 2026 and a Youth Climate and Nature Panel. However, it does not explicitly detail a clear, resourced public participation programme specifically within the Seventh Carbon Budget Delivery Plan that addresses all aspects of two-way engagement and transparent feedback loops as recommended.

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38 Conclusion Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

We welcome the Government’s decision to invite us to undertake early scrutiny of the Seventh...

We welcome the Government’s decision to invite us to undertake early scrutiny of the Seventh Carbon Budget. This represents a material improvement on previous practice and reflects growing recognition of Parliament’s role in scrutinising not just carbon targets, but the … Read more

Government Response

The government expresses gratitude for the Environmental Audit Committee's engagement in scrutinising the carbon budget recommendations and welcomes their support for the recommended level for CB7.

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40 Recommendation Acknowledged

8th Report - The Seventh Carbon Bu…

The Government should support a formal, enhanced Parliamentary scrutiny framework for the Seventh Carbon Budget...

The Government should support a formal, enhanced Parliamentary scrutiny framework for the Seventh Carbon Budget that enables meaningful scrutiny both before approval and throughout delivery, by an annual report on each Department’s progress towards time framed targets. Following the setting … Read more The Government should support a formal, enhanced Parliamentary scrutiny framework for the Seventh Carbon Budget that enables meaningful scrutiny both before approval and throughout delivery, by an annual report on each Department’s progress towards time framed targets. Following the setting of the Sixth Carbon Budget, our predecessor Committee made a comprehensive set of recommendations on how Parliamentary scrutiny of future carbon budgets should be strengthened. We consider that those recommendations remain the most appropriate framework for scrutiny of the Seventh Carbon Budget, and we recommend that the Government implement them in full. In particular, the Government should adopt the approach set out below: • When Ministers announce the proposed level of the Seventh Carbon Budget, they should simultaneously lay before Parliament a draft carbon budget delivery framework, setting out the policies and proposals intended to deliver the budget, as described in Chapters 2 and 3, for scrutiny and debate. Ministers should give notice of a motion under Standing Order No. 118(3)(a) that the draft Order is not to be referred to a Delegated Legislation Committee in the House of Commons, but instead debated on the Floor of the House. • A defined period of three months of Parliamentary scrutiny should elapse between publication of the draft delivery framework and the laying of the draft Carbon Budget Order. While recognising statutory constraints, this period should be sufficient to allow committees to take evidence, publish reports, and engage constructively with Ministers on delivery feasibility and risk. • This scrutiny period will enable relevant House of Commons and House of Lords committees to examine elements of the draft delivery framework within their remits. The Secretary of State for DESNZ, who has principal responsibility for delivery, should agree to appear before the Environmental Audit Committee at an early stage. • The Government should arrange for a debate of Show less

Government Response

The government acknowledges the committee’s suggestions for an enhanced scrutiny framework, stating that the outlined elements will be considered carefully as they develop the delivery plan for the seventh carbon budget, while aligning with existing statutory duties.

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Government Response AI assessment · 40 of 27 classified

Accepted 20

Accepted in Part 6

Acknowledged 12

Deferred 2

Total 27 recs + 13 conclusions

Correspondence 4 letters

23 Jun 2026 To committee Letter from the Minister of Climate relating to The Seventh Carbon Budget, 22 June

Parliament page

11 Feb 2026 From committee Letter to the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero relating to data centres and the Carbon Budget, 11 January

Parliament page

11 Feb 2026 To committee Letter from the Chair of the Climate Change Committee, Nigel Topping CMG, relating to Oral Evidence given to the Environmental Audit Committee, 7 January

Parliament page

12 Nov 2025 To committee Letter from the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero relating to the Government’s Plan for meeting Carbon Budgets 4-6, 29 October 2025

Parliament page