In an interview with the Observer, Alok Sharma said a full commitment to the net zero agenda by whoever leads the country would be necessary to avoid “incredible damage” to Britain’s global standing, as well as irreversible damage to the UK and international economies. . “This is absolutely a leadership issue,” Sharma said, accusing some of the candidates of being “lukewarm” in the contest so far. “Whoever aspires to lead our country must demonstrate that they take this issue incredibly seriously, that they are willing to continue to lead and take up the mantle that Boris Johnson started. I want to see candidates very proactively stating their support for our net zero agenda for green growth.” His comments came as the UK braces for record temperatures of 40C (104F) in the coming days, while fires rage across large parts of the continent. In southwestern France and Spain, thousands of people had to be evacuated from their homes. More than 12,200 people had evacuated France’s Gironde region by Saturday morning as 1,000 firefighters battled to bring the flames under control. Asked if he might step down if candidates were weak to net zero, Sharma said: “Let’s see, shall we? I think we have to see where the candidates stand. And we have to see who ends up in No 10. I hope every candidate realizes why this is so important to voters in general and why it is important to Conservative supporters. And I hope we’ll see, particularly with the last two, a very clear statement that this is an agenda that they do support.” Alok Sharma has accused some of the Tory leadership candidates of being “lukewarm” to net zero. Photo: David Levenson/Getty Images Pressed a second time, he added: “I’m not ruling anything out and I’m not ruling anything out.” While all of the leadership candidates, with the exception of Kemi Badenoch, have technically committed to the UK’s legislated target of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, there are serious doubts whether everyone else will push through the policies needed to achieve it. of the target. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss called for a “temporary moratorium” on the green energy levy, while Penny Mordaunt called for green levies to be scrapped. Tom Tugendhat wavered on net zero, first questioning the target and then affirming it, while Badenoch called net zero “unilateral economic disarmament.” Rishi Sunak has said he will maintain levies, backs net zero and called for more home insulation, although critics have noted he withdrew cash from the Treasury for insulation while Chancellor of the Exchequer. Criticizing opponents of green levies, Sharma pointed out that they help poor households with insulation, support more renewable energy generation capacity and pay for rebates on electricity bills. Without the levies, he said, more people would be vulnerable to high bills and there would be less renewable energy, which lowers energy costs. “We need to understand very clearly what actually drives the price of energy. It’s not green levies, it’s the wholesale price of natural gas,” he said. The increasingly bitter contest to succeed Johnson is causing deeper rifts across the party on a range of policy issues. As well as the row over net zero, the candidates have clashed over plans to cut taxes, while many northern Tory MPs fear that those aiming to become prime minister are not sufficiently connected to the leveling off agenda. In a surprise development last night, a survey of 850 Tory MPs put Badenoch in the lead on 31%, with Truss second on 20%, Mordaunt third on 18%, Sunak fourth on 17% and Tugendhat fifth on 10 %. The investigation into the ConservativeHome website was made yesterday after Friday’s televised debate on Channel 4. The next leadership vote by Tory MPs on Monday is expected to see Tugendhat, who came last of the five survivors in Thursday’s vote, disqualified, although his supporters believe his upbeat performance in the televised debate could strengthen its support. It will also be crucial to Truss and Mordaunt’s chances of progressing to the bottom two after both were deemed to have disappointing performances on Friday. Truss will need to show that she has won over the majority of MPs who supported Attorney General Suella Braverman, who dropped out of the race on Thursday, if she is to claim second place from Mordant and boost her chances of making it to the bottom two. There are 27 votes available from Braverman’s hard Brexit supporters. Braverman has backed Truss, while Steve Baker, a prominent supporter, has fallen behind the foreign secretary. However, some Braverman supporters are threatening to back Badenoch. Postal votes will be sent to more than 150,000 Tory party members who will decide the final winner by the end of this month. Members will also be able to vote electronically. A senior Tory source said this meant “everything could be done and dusted by mid-August”. Meanwhile, Labor is taking advantage of the blue-on-blue infighting that has broken out. The party has produced attack ads aimed at marginal and target positions, highlighting unpriced promises and a lack of plans for energy costs. He also called on the candidates to reveal whether they would scrap the non-residential scheme – a hugely popular Labor policy. Labor strategists believe the unfunded promises announced mean they are being handed a regular gift. They said the Tories were involved in a “chaotic tussle at a time when the country needs proper leadership”. An attack ad read: “Conservative leadership candidates are playing fantastically cheap with your money. Britain deserves a government that is honest about how we fund every promise made. That’s what you’ll get with Labour.” Sharma is the leading green voice in the cabinet, having won plaudits around the world for his deft chairmanship of the divisive UN climate summit Cop26 last November. The UK holds the chair of the talks until Egypt takes over in November at the next Cop27 conference in Sharm El Sheikh, and until then the UK will play a vital role in convening nations to deliver on their Cop26 pledge to curb global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Sharma is tipped to be the next UN climate chief, succeeding outgoing top official Patricia Espinosa, whose term ended this month, but said he decided not to apply in order to stay on as police chief until the end of the United Kingdom presidency.
