Climate change: Can the UK afford its net zero policies?

With the cost of living rising, are Britain's plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions too expensive?

A group of Conservative MPs argue that with energy prices going up, the government should rethink how it reaches net zero by the year 2050.

A number of key arguments have been made by the group. What does the data tell us?

The goal of net zero was written into UK law three years ago.

It is a commitment to transform the way our economy operates. Net zero is not adding to the amount of greenhouse gases. Reducing emissions as much as possible is what it takes to achieve it.

It is vital that we keep global temperature rises to manageable levels, according to the world's scientists.

The Net Zero Scrutiny Group is made up of 20 Conservative MPs and peers and was set up last summer by two Eurosceptics.

In a letter published in the Telegraph in January, the group argued that the UK government was causing energy prices to increase faster than any other country because of taxes and environmental levies.

There have been a lot of articles questioning the logic behind the net zero strategy in the weeks that have followed.

The price of reaching net zero is too high, the plans are too hasty, and Britain is not in a position to afford it.

Mr Mackinlay said in an email that it would be more sensible to load Net Zero closer to the end of the century.

The Treasury's Office for Business Responsibility says that delaying action on climate change by ten years could double the cost.

The science of climate change is not questioned by the NZSG.

Some of its members have links to think tanks that have questioned the scientific consensus on global warming and the necessity and cost of doing something about it.

Mr Mackinlay said that the group's role is toscrutinise and to focus on energy security, affordability, practicality and are the vulnerable protected.

The rise in global gas wholesale prices is the reason why the average UK energy bill will go up in April. The costs of gas suppliers going out of business will be the majority of the hike.

This breakdown from Ofgem shows how the green part of your bill has stayed relatively stable. The levy is spent on a mix of social and environmental policies and includes things like supporting energy efficiency in low-income households. The Policy Cost will fall in April for customers who pay for their gas and electricity in a dual-fuel deal.

Electricity generation economics have changed in the last decade. Renewables have gone from being heavily subsidized to being the cheapest option for new projects due to technological advances and economies of scale. A record 43.1% of the UK's electricity came from renewable sources in 2020.

The levelised cost is the cost to build and operate a power station and how long it will last.

When the wind doesn't blow and the sun isn't shining, how is Britain going to keep the lights on? The technology is not yet capable of storing enough power. Nuclear or gas should be a back-up for when the output from renewables falls.

The Net Zero Scrutiny Group has called for more gas to be taken out of the ground and used as fuel while nuclear capacity is rebuilt.

The focus of the NZSG has been to get the revival of the process of fracking for gas.

High-pressure water and chemical mixture is fired into rocks underground in the process of fracking. There was a moratorium on the practice of frack in the UK in 2019.

The supporters of frack are envious of the United States. There has been a huge increase in gas supply and prices are low. The market conditions in the US and the UK are very different. Britain is very much connected to global gas markets.

Simon Evans of Carbon Brief says that the UK operates in a global market for gas where it is competing with other European countries for gas from the North Sea.

Domestically produced gas would feed into that market and be sold to the highest bidder.

Craig Mackinlay of the NZSG agrees that international prices would still apply to the UK, but argues that a domestic fracturing industry would bring huge benefits, help and level up.

An analysis from the London School of Economics suggests that the supporters of frack are over optimistic about how many jobs it will create.

Public opinion is the biggest obstacle for the frackers. A recent survey put support for the ban at just 19%.

The numbers are large. TheBalanced Net Zero Pathway was costed by the UK's Office for Budget Responsibility in July of last year.

The cost will be spread over three decades. The net cost to the state will be 343 billion dollars in real terms when combined with savings from more energy efficient buildings and vehicles. The average is 0.4% of GDP a year. Defence spending in the UK is less than 2% of GDP.

According to the UK government's latest report into the risks of climate change, flooding for non-residential properties across the UK is expected to increase by 40% by 2080. This increases to 42% and 75% at 4C.

The cost of a rise of less than 2C is estimated by the report to be more than 1 billion dollars a year by the year 2050.

If emissions aren't quickly cut, there will be a loss of between 7 and 23% of global GDP by the end of this century.