In January 2020 Philip was elected Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC).
The EAC shares with the Public Accounts Committee the remit to look across government, rather than shadowing an individual department. This allows the EAC to scrutinise all government departments, and public and private sector impact on our environment, as well as measures to mitigate climate change. This could well be one of the defining policy areas of this Parliament, as we put in place the policies to enable the UK to reach net zero emissions as soon as possible, and certainly by 2050.
In the past two years, Philip initiated the Committee’s enquiry into one of the largest - yet largely hidden – sectors where modern slavery is prevalent today in Britain, and have pushed for more transparency to encourage Green Finance and greening of UK export finance, in improving biodiversity, air, water and soil quality.
It is clear from maiden speeches that many new MPs are committed environmentalists. They will help keep up the pressure on government to deliver policies for the UK to be a leader internationally in addressing climate change. Not least this November when we host the next UN Climate Change conference (COP26) in Glasgow.
Visit the Environmental Audit Committee webpages here: http://parliament.uk/eacom.
In the final session before the end of the 2021-22 Parliamentary session, Philip Dunne, Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, calls on the Government to publish today the overdue Government response to the Committee’s report on Water Quality in Rivers.
Philip Dunne, Chair of the Environmental Audit Committee, questioned the PM on the Government’s Energy Security Strategy as the Committee launches a new inquiry into accelerating the transition from fossil fuels and securing energy supplies.
With many countries looking to their energy security, Philip Dunne calls on the COP26 President to work with partner countries to increase renewables, and reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels.
Last week’s news that energy bills will rise by on average £693 from April is of deep concern to my constituents. Such a steep rise will be felt by everyone, including middle-income households. Higher energy costs are already being felt by businesses in sectors well beyond energy.