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The cross-party Environmental Audit Committee is calling on the United Kingdom (UK) Government to go out on a limb and act unilaterally to speed up cuts in Carbon emissions – arguing that such action is now necessary to build the international political will needed for a binding global climate deal after the debacle within Copenhagen last year (December 2009).

Its recommendations, if implemented, would put a stop to new coal-fired power plants that fail to incorporate carbon capture and storage (CCS) and would also potentially limit aviation expansion.

Business leaders though are warning that they could also impede the United Kingdom"s (UK"s) ability to compete within the global market place.

The Environmental Audit Committee"s report argues that the current pace of carbon dioxide cutting within the United Kingdom (UK) is far too slow and that the Government is only on track to meet its first carbon budget because of the impact of the recent recession.

“Ministers have often been too ’optimistic’ when projecting how much carbon their policies will cut – and there is now a worrying shortfall in delivery,” the report states loudly.

Specifically, it points out that United Kingdom (UK) Carbon emissions are currently falling by only about one per cent per year, instead of the two to three per cent that the Committee on Climate Change says is required to avoid dangerous climate change in the near future.

The Environmental Audit Committee"s report calls for urgent action now to meet the two to three per cent target, to be followed by moves to tighten carbon budgets and increase the 2020 target for reducing emissions to 42 per cent on 1990 levels by 2020.

As part of a strategy to deliver this higher target, the Environmental Audit Committee also calls on the Government to “put the right regulatory framework in place to ensure that we do not wrongly invest in high-carbon infrastructure” – effectively banning developments such as new coal-fired power plants that don"t employ carbon capture and storage (CCS).

The Environmental Audit Committee also recommends that the Government shows the impact of Carbon emissions from aviation and shipping on progress towards meeting its targets – and that any growth in aviation is within the bounds set by the Committee on Climate Change and doesn"t have a negative impact on Carbon emissions targets or carbon budgets.

The report also adds that the United Kingdom (UK) Government should move to the new 42 per cent target “whether or not the European Union (EU) moves to a 30 per cent target for cutting its emissions”.

Although the Environmental Audit Committee recommends that the Government should be prepared to move unilaterally “to secure competitive advantages for the United Kingdom (UK) in emerging markets for low carbon technologies”, business leaders are also suggesting that the more ambitious emission cuts recommended could be very damaging to the United Kingdom"s (UK"s) businesses overall.

“For the United Kingdom (UK) to move to a 42 per cent reduction commitment while the rest of the European Union (EU) is not committed to increasing their target to 30 per cent, would seriously damage industry in this country especially when efforts to meet the original 34 per cent target are proving a significant challenge,” says Gareth Stace, head of environment policy for the manufacturers" organisation, EEF.

A recent survey of EEF members found that despite a clear commitment by manufacturers to address climate change, a majority of Small to medium-sized Enterprises (SME"s) were struggling to keep pace with the changes already announced by Government.

Gareth Stace also added that if more ambitious targets were set: “Competitiveness could be damaged to such an extent that it will place a significant cost on the economy that will prove unsustainable and make the United Kingdom (UK) a less attractive place for international investment.”

Director of business environment at the CBI, Dr Neil Bentley also made a similar point: “It may be right to move to a more ambitious Carbon emissions reduction target in the future, but we need to be wary of being two steps ahead of the rest of the world, adding that;

“Without a level-playing field internationally, United Kingdom (UK) businesses could find themselves at a disadvantage, and some firms may simply shift production to countries where Carbon emissions targets aren"t as tough.”

But it"s the Environmental Audit Committee"s contention that any efforts by the United Kingdom (UK) to cut Carbon emissions, at whatever level, will be rendered meaningless without a global climate deal, and unilateral action of the kind it proposes could be critical to securing such an agreement.

The Committee"s chair, Tim Yeo MP says in defence of the report that: "We must send a clear signal to developing countries that we are serious about making an international deal work – by meeting our own Carbon reduction targets more quickly, finishing with;

"The slower our progress; the less credibility we will have internationally.”