The Science
It is not too late to prevent catastrophic climate change, provided we act with urgency. We need a Climate Change Bill that works.
If we are to avoid the worst effects of climate change, we have to stay below a 2°C increase in average global temperatures, compared to what they were before the industrial era.
In tackling climate change, developed countries must follow the latest science, which clearly shows the need for the UK to reduce its CO2 emissions by at least 80% by 2050.
The world's most respected climate scientists agree that climate change is real, that we're already seeing its effects and that we don't have much time - perhaps only five years - to act. We can avoid climate change being a catastrophe for habitats, wildlife and people, but we have to act in line with the science.
If we want even a 50:50 chance of staying below the 2°C threshold, then at the very least we must halve global emissions of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) by the middle of the century. Industrial countries such as the UK - which have the biggest per capita emissions and a historical responsibility for causing the problem - will have to cut their carbon emissions by much more than this, and will have to begin doing so as soon as possible.
The UK government previously suggested a CO2 reduction target of 60%, based on a report that the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (RCEP) published in 2000. Fortunately, due to a huge amount of pressure created by NGOs, the scientific community and members of the public, the government requested the Climate Change Committee to report early on whether the target should be revised upwards to at least 80% by 2050, and whether it should cover all greenhouse gases - not just carbon dioxide.
Now that the government has taken advice from the Committee, we need to strengthen other parts of the Bill to ensure we stick to an 80% reduction target, and that we make the majority of the reductions in the UK.
Read the scientists' statement
Find out about other areas where the Bill needs strengthening
Read about the impacts climate change is having on species and habitats here
Find out more about the impacts we face in the UK
