As the Labour Party moves forward with its net zero policies, the leading energy speakers for the UK’s two main right-wing opposition parties are openly questioning the established climate science, seemingly aiming to discredit and muddle the issue. This shift would have been unthinkable three years ago, when the four-decade-long cross-party agreement on climate still held strong. Even in the recent general election, every major party except Reform UK committed to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Now, the Conservative leadership has abandoned that commitment, and Reform – which is enjoying a significant lead in the polls and celebrated a 30% vote share in local elections – sees it as the central issue, after immigration, for the next general election. The party’s energy spokesperson, Richard Tice, denies that humans are causing climate change and suggests that the answer to climate breakdown is “planting trees” and adapting. This stance contradicts the views of the majority of scientists.
The Conservative’s Andrew Bowie, acting shadow energy secretary, also argues that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is “biased” and claims that the 2050 net zero target is “arbitrary and not based on science.” This assertion is rejected by climate scientists, who confirm that the UK’s legally binding target of reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 is based on the best global scientific advice.
The breakdown of the climate consensus, which started after Boris Johnson left Downing Street, seems complete, with the difference between Reform and the Conservatives being that Reform wants to scrap net zero entirely, and the Conservatives may keep it but for a later date. Both parties claim to be supporting business and jobs through their stance, but business voices have been clear in their support for net zero. Instead, opposing net zero might align with some right-wing’s approach of small government and deregulation.
Reform’s environmental policy is complex, with the party supporting measures like “Swift bricks” in all new houses and taking sewage out of British rivers, despite its stance against net zero. There is also money involved, with Reform and the Conservatives receiving donations from prominent supporters with a climate-denying outlook. Despite the feelings of Reform voters, who are concerned about the climate crisis and support policies to tackle it, the party will make net zero its second most important battleground, after immigration.
Sam Hall, director of the Conservative Environment Network, warned that ditching net zero would put the Conservative party on a collision course with not just Labour and the British public but the laws of physics. He argued that the net zero target is driven by scientific reality and that abandoning it would damage both growth and the fight against climate change.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/15/tories-reform-net-zero-climate-science
