Business 'can rise to climate change challenge' says CBI

Business can meet the demands of a strict new recommendation on climate change, according to the CBI.

The organisation welcomed the advice to the Government from the Committee for Climate Change, which recommends at least an 80% cut in greenhouse gases by 2050 - revising the former target of 60% as set out in the Climate Change Bill.

Committee chairman Adair Turner wrote to new Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Milliband, saying that the target, which could be achieved for an estimated 1-2% of GDP in 2050, was "feasible".

The recommendations cover all emissions - not just carbon dioxide - and all sectors of the UK economy.

The CBI's director of business environment, Dr Neil Bentley, said major reductions in emissions could be made at a manageable cost, but only if the correct policies are put in place.

"Raising the target to 80% will increase the challenge to business, but we believe that UK firms will continue to rise to this challenge.

"The committee's initial view here seems to mirror our own analysis in its emphasis on energy efficiency of building stock and products and on decarbonising the energy supply through new nuclear as well as renewable power sources."

IMAGEGene Blythe/AP/PA Photos