The UK is in pole position to clean up on green energy investment

Arguments for inaction on climate change often focus on the fact that the UK accounts for less than 1% of global emissions.

- Rhian Mari-Thomas

This misses a crucial point: the global transition to net zero is an economic imperative as much as a scientific one.

Last year, $2.1tn was invested in clean energy technologies globally, according to Bloomberg NEF. Of this figure, more than $65bn (3.1%) was deployed in the UK.

According to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the UK’s green economy grew by more than 10% last year, supporting 951,000 jobs and contributing more than £83bn of GVA. And, crucially, Britain has built not just a green industrial base but a global financial ecosystem, centred on London, capable of deploying capital into decarbonisation efforts in more than 60 countries.

This race for investment is one in which the UK should aim to finish on the podium. To achieve this, government and finance need to work in partnership and it’s here that fractured politics poses maximum danger.