Zemo Partnership has named members of the newly formed Independent Council for Net Zero Transport. The Council will support the incoming government “as it refocuses on the challenge of delivering net-zero and maximising the benefits to UK PLC from the transition.”
Lord Deben is Chair of the Council. He was formerly Chair of the Climate Change Committee and is joined by 13 other members. While none are specifically from the coach and bus sector, some have an interest in the industry as part of their wider duties.
Lord Deben notes that a recent High Court decision that the Carbon Budget Delivery Plan was unlawful “underlines the scale of the challenge that will be facing the next government.” He adds a belief that progress on reaching net-zero “has stalled,” and that in some areas, it has gone backwards.
“Transport is one of the most challenging and complex sectors of the UK economy to decarbonise. It is also responsible for around a quarter of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions.
“This new Council brings together very experienced people in key positions and with the widest range of perspectives to help us forge an evidence-based, multi-stakeholder consensus on how we can maximise the benefits from this essential – and inevitable – transition.”
Zemo continues to work with over 200 member organisations to develop an overall delivery roadmap for net-zero transport, supported by underlying sectoral plans. The Council for Net Zero Transport will provide strategic oversight and help to steer that direction.
The ultimate objective of the Council is to provide the next government with a coherent, consensus-based plan to guide future policy and provide a clearer basis for policy decisions at all tiers of government. Progress will be reported at a series of quarterly briefings.
In addition to Lord Deben, members of the Council are:
- Prof Jillian Anable – Chair in Transport and Energy, University of Leeds Institute for Transport Studies
- Elizabeth de Jong – CEO, Fuels Industry UK
- Mike Hawes – CEO, Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders
- Fiona Howarth – CEO, Octopus Electric Vehicles
- Prof Neville Jackson – Chair, RAC Foundation
- Edmund King – President, Automobile Association
- Cordi O’Hara – President, UK Electricity Distribution, National Grid
- Dr Doug Parr – Chief Scientist and Policy Director, Greenpeace UK
- Anne Shaw – Executive Director, Transport for West Midlands
- Chris Stark – CEO, Carbon Trust
- Martin Tugwell – CEO, Transport for the North
- David Wells – CEO, Logistics UK
- TBC – Chair, Local Infrastructure and Net Zero Board, Local Government Association.
Speaking about formation of the Council, Zemo Partnership Executive Director Claire Haigh says: “We urgently need to move beyond targets to the delivery of net-zero transport. There are huge benefits and industrial opportunities if we get this right. We need a clear roadmap to the destination.
“We are greatly encouraged that so many leading people with large stakes in the transport decarbonisation agenda have readily agreed to work with us to steer UK transport decarbonisation through this next crucial delivery phase.”
