The government set out its proposed level for the Seventh Carbon Budget on 2 June 2026, adopting a target of around 87% emissions reduction in the period 2038-42, in line with the Climate Change Committee's advice. The proposal was formally laid before Parliament1. The budget is a legally binding limit on emissions during the five-year period from 2038-20422.
The Climate Change Committee, which advises government on carbon budgets, welcomed the decision. Its chair, Nigel Topping, said:
"The Committee is delighted that the Government have accepted the CCC's advised level for the Seventh Carbon Budget. The lower-cost, energy-secure future is electric, so we hope to see the Government plan to accelerate electrification, in particular by making electricity cheaper."
The draft budget sets a cap of 535 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e), or some 107MtCO2e per year2. The government's impact assessment states that meeting the budget would require around £880bn of investment over 25 years, and that doing so would yield benefits worth £1,620bn2. It says the budget would help save £445bn up to 2050 from reduced fossil-fuel imports, and that the benefits would be worth £1,035bn relative to a "no net-zero" policy if the country faces persistently high fossil-fuel prices2. Energy secretary Ed Miliband said the target would reduce the UK's exposure to "volatile international fossil-fuel markets and protect bill-payers"2.
The government's impact assessment also outlines a less ambitious goal of 83% below 1990 levels by 2040 and a tighter target of 89%2. It says the low end of ambition "increases the risk of underinvestment", while the highest target could face "deliverability risks [that] may undermine [the UK's] credibility"2.
The carbon budgets set so far are:
| Budget | Period | Cap | Reduction on 1990 levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | 2008-2012 | 3,018 MtCO2e | 26% |
| Second | 2013-2017 | 2,782 MtCO2e | 32% |
| Third | 2018-2022 | 2,544 MtCO2e | 38% |
| Fourth | 2023-2027 | 1,950 MtCO2e | 52% |
| Fifth | 2028-2032 | 1,725 MtCO2e | 58% |
| Sixth | 2033-2037 | 965 MtCO2e | 77% |
| Seventh | 2038-2042 | 535 MtCO2e | 87% |
Source: House of Commons Library research briefing3. The briefing gives the seventh budget period as 2028 to 2042 in one passage and 2038-2042 elsewhere; the Climate Change Committee and Carbon Brief both give 2038-421.
The sixth and seventh budgets include the UK's share of emissions from international aviation and shipping, unlike the first five3.
Why it matters for households
The budget is a cap on national emissions, not a requirement on any individual home, but the pathway the Climate Change Committee describes to meet it runs through household energy use. The committee says electrification and low-carbon electricity supply make up the largest share of emissions reductions in its pathway, meaning a shift to electric vehicles, electric heat pumps and electrified industrial processes2. In its delivery plan for the sixth carbon budget, covering 2033-2037, the government said roughly a third of UK homes should have heat pumps by 2035 and around half of cars on the road should be EVs2. The government says that by 2050 the UK could cut its reliance on fossil fuels from around three quarters of its energy today to around 15%, while avoiding around £445bn in fossil-fuel spending over the next 25 years2. The Climate Change Committee's 2026 progress report said the government "is not moving fast enough to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect households and businesses from volatile fossil fuel prices"3.
What happens next
The seventh carbon budget must be approved by Parliament before the end of June 2026, after which the government must publish a plan to meet it "as soon as reasonably practicable"2. The House of Commons Library briefing records that, following parliamentary scrutiny, CB7 was agreed in both Houses, committing the UK to emissions reductions of 87% from 1990 levels3. The government has said it will publish a delivery plan setting out how it will meet the reductions required3. The government has not yet responded to the Climate Change Committee's June 2026 progress report3.
Sources3 cited
- Response to the Government's Seventh Carbon Budget target - Climate Change Committee, theccc.org.uk
- Q&A: How UK’s seventh carbon budget will deliver '£865bn’ in economic benefits - Carbon Brief, carbonbrief.org
- [](https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9888/CBP-9888.pdf), researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk