San Francisco Frontiers - Green policies just good politics, says UK minister

Katie White, a member of the ruling Labour government, said the UK's right-wing parties had miscalculated by vowing to undo the country's greenhouse gas goals if they took power.

"The UK public is hugely in favor of action on climate," said the minister of state in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero during an interview with AFP at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Monday.

"And after the summer we've had, the most extreme weather we've ever experienced... four heat waves, deadly wildfires across our nation, the public are asking for more action."

Britain was the first major economy to legally bind itself to net zero by 2050 under the Conservatives. Under that party's current leader, Kemi Badenoch, they have abandoned the goal, saying it would damage the economy.

Nigel Farage's Reform party goes further still, deriding the goal as "net stupid zero" with some members outright rejecting the scientific consensus on human-caused climate change.

Yet an Ipsos poll in August found 74 percent of British people reported being concerned about climate change. Slightly fewer, 69 percent, recall being concerned prior to the 2026 summer.

White described the polling as "pretty unprecedented," adding that anti-climate change politics reflected a breakdown of consensus among political elites, not the people.

Critics often say the transition is driving up energy costs, a point White partly conceded.

"Our most abundant resource is our wind. We are a windy little island," said White, in New York to attend the city's annual Climate Week and engage in climate diplomacy at the UN.

"(But) there is an upfront investment cost of that."

She likened buying fossil fuels from Norway and the United States to renting a house, while building out renewable infrastructure is "like we've bought our own house, and there is a down payment cost of that."

"And after the second fossil fuel crisis in four years, we've seen energy prices skyrocket," she said, referring to the Iran war and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "In the long term, clean power is absolutely the answer."

Britain also has dwindling North Sea oil reserves that have caught the eye of US President Donald Trump, who has urged new Prime Minister Andy Burnham to expand drilling.

Two sites are currently under review. White said she could not comment on which way the decision would land -- but stressed "British policy is for the British people" and said some oil and gas fits within the country's next carbon budget.

White said electrification -- converting systems over to electricity, especially when produced through renewable sources -- is a key focus in the run-up to the G20 and the COP31 climate talks.

It's often an upgrade, too, she said, citing her six years as an EV driver.

"I would never go back. It is a much more pleasant experience. It's smoother. I'm not supposed to say it's faster, but it is faster," she laughed.

K.Torres--SFF