Commentary on Sections Functions of the Committee Section 34: Advice in connection with carbon budgets
177.This section sets out the Committee on Climate Change’s advisory duties in relation to carbon budgets, and the timing of the advice that must be given.
178.Subsection (1) requires the Committee to give advice on carbon budgets. The Committee must advise on the levels at which carbon budgets should be set and on the extent to which budgets should be met by reducing the level of net UK emissions or by the use of carbon units credited to the net UK carbon account. The Committee must advise on the contributions towards meeting carbon budgets that should be made by sectors of the economy covered by trading schemes (taken as a whole) and by other sectors (taken as a whole). The Committee is also required to advise on sectors of the economy in which there are particular opportunities for contributions to be made towards meeting carbon budgets through reductions in emissions of targeted greenhouse gases.
179.Subsection (2) gives the Committee an advisory duty that only applies to the 2008–2012 budget period. The Committee is required to advise the Secretary of State on whether its advice on the level of the 2008­–2012 budget is consistent with meeting a separate target of reducing emissions to an annual equivalent (as defined in section 5(2)) of 20% below the 1990 baseline, and to set out what the costs and benefits would be of setting a budget consistent with that target.
180.Subsection (3) requires the Committee to set out the reasons for its advice and subsection (4) makes provision on the timing of the advice.
181.Subsection (5) imposes upon the Committee a duty to send copies of the advice to the devolved administrations at the same time as it gives its advice to the Secretary of State. Subsection (6) gives the Committee a duty to publish its advice in any manner it considers appropriate.