Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
The UK is an extraordinary case study in how to cut greenhouse gas pollution successfully. Since 1990, the country has more than halved its greenhouse gas emissions, while the economy has grown by over 80%.
The Climate Change Act, passed in 2008, has helped steer the UK towards its net-zero goals, setting five yearly carbon budgets that are specifically designed to be ambitious but flexible, with lots of options available to the government to meet the targets.
Joining this week’s episode of Cleaning Up is Emma Pinchbeck, the new CEO of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), the organisation which advises the government on the route it should take to net zero.
Emma spent close to a decade leading the UK’s energy sector trade association, and is now responsible for producing advice on the UK's final three carbon budgets. In February, the CCC published the seventh carbon budget, which covers the period centred around the year 2040.
Emma joins Bryony Worthington to talk about the progress the UK is making in meeting its carbon targets, the challenges ahead, and why it's so important the UK holds the course, even if others have chosen to abandon their climate ambitions.
Leadership Circle:
Cleaning Up is supported by the Leadership Circle, and its founding members: Actis, Alcazar Energy, Davidson Kempner, EcoPragma Capital, EDP of Portugal, Eurelectric, the Gilardini Foundation, KKR, National Grid, Octopus Energy, Quadrature Climate Foundation, SDCL and Wärtsilä. For more information on the Leadership Circle, please visit https://www.cleaningup.live.
Discover more:
• The 7th Carbon Budget: theccc.org.uk/publication/the-seventh-carbon-budget
• Emma’s previous appearance on Cleaning Up: youtu.be/66flrmMEmso
Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
03:38 - Who is Emma Pinchbeck?
06:00 - The UK Energy Crisis
09:30 - Energy Security
14:00 - What is the Climate Change Committee?
19:00 - What The CCC Does
24:30 - Challenges To the 6th Budget
28:00 - Electricity Growth & Gas
32:00 - Innovation
35:00 - Agriculture & Land Use
40:00 - Contracts for Difference
42:00 - Farming Business Models
46:00 - Incentivising Supermarkets
49:30 - Farming Subsidies
52:45 - Why The UK's Emissions Still Matter
58:45 - What Do The UK Public Want?
01:03:30 - Adaptation & Risk Management
01:07:00 - Outro
The UK is an extraordinary case study in how to cut greenhouse gas pollution successfully. Since 1990, the country has more than halved its greenhouse gas emissions, while the economy has grown by over 80%.
The Climate Change Act, passed in 2008, has helped steer the UK towards its net-zero goals, setting five yearly carbon budgets that are specifically designed to be ambitious but flexible, with lots of options available to the government to meet the targets.
Joining this week’s episode of Cleaning Up is Emma Pinchbeck, the new CEO of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), the organisation which advises the government on the route it should take to net zero.
Emma spent close to a decade leading the UK’s energy sector trade association, and is now responsible for producing advice on the UK's final three carbon budgets. In February, the CCC published the seventh carbon budget, which covers the period centred around the year 2040.
Emma joins Bryony Worthington to talk about the progress the UK is making in meeting its carbon targets, the challenges ahead, and why it's so important the UK holds the course, even if others have chosen to abandon their climate ambitions.
Leadership Circle:
Cleaning Up is supported by the Leadership Circle, and its founding members: Actis, Alcazar Energy, Davidson Kempner, EcoPragma Capital, EDP of Portugal, Eurelectric, the Gilardini Foundation, KKR, National Grid, Octopus Energy, Quadrature Climate Foundation, SDCL and Wärtsilä. For more information on the Leadership Circle, please visit https://www.cleaningup.live.
Discover more:
• The 7th Carbon Budget: theccc.org.uk/publication/the-seventh-carbon-budget
• Emma’s previous appearance on Cleaning Up: youtu.be/66flrmMEmso
Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
03:38 - Who is Emma Pinchbeck?
06:00 - The UK Energy Crisis
09:30 - Energy Security
14:00 - What is the Climate Change Committee?
19:00 - What The CCC Does
24:30 - Challenges To the 6th Budget
28:00 - Electricity Growth & Gas
32:00 - Innovation
35:00 - Agriculture & Land Use
40:00 - Contracts for Difference
42:00 - Farming Business Models
46:00 - Incentivising Supermarkets
49:30 - Farming Subsidies
52:45 - Why The UK's Emissions Still Matter
58:45 - What Do The UK Public Want?
01:03:30 - Adaptation & Risk Management
01:07:00 - Outro
