The UK Government received a warning on the 1st of February (2023) from the Climate Change Committee (CCC). The Committee has informed the government that in order to protect the UK from the inevitable effects of climate change, it must increase its climate adaptation investment to between half a billion to £1 billion per year.
There has also been a warning that the UK’s climate adaptation investment may need to rise to up to £10 billion to protect the UK. Currently, within the UK the funding that goes into climate adaptation is severely inefficient.
The UK Government are carrying out a
“severe dereliction of duty”, as important
adaptation improvements have not been made.
In order for the UK to increase its investment the government must understand where this money is needed. This summer (2023), the UK Government will release their National Adaptation Programme, with updates that will hopefully contain prioritised areas of climate adaptation that needs to be invested into, to protect the UK from climate change.
The CCC has advised that climate adaptation needs to be prioritised for school, hospitals and other public buildings, flood defences and transport infrastructure, including train lines and roads.
The CCC are not the only committee to warn the UK Government that they are not doing enough. The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy have also warned the UK that it needs to increase its climate resilience. The committee has stated that the UK Government are carrying out a “severe dereliction of duty”, as important adaptation improvements have not been made.
