Climate change is having a huge impact on the world we live in and the calls to tackle it are growing louder every day. The MTA report highlights that the UK is well placed to lead the way in this green future, if we act now. Since the early 90s, the UK has reduced carbon emissions by 44% and is the first country to commit to net zero emissions, naming 2050 as the target year.
James Selka CEO of the MTA Said “Going green is not an option, it a necessity. The UK has a worldwide reputation for innovation within manufacturing and engineering. This report highlights the need to invest to make to the essential transition to a decarbonised economy.”
“By embracing green technology, we can transform our economy as a whole and work towards sustainable growth, creating new, higher paid, jobs and protect the environment in the process.”
The Commission on Climate Change, which underpinned the net-zero target, estimated that an increase in investment in Green technologies in the order of 1 to 2% of GDP per year up to 2050 was needed.
Green growth is an important economic driver – growing around four times faster than the overall economy. Starting early gives companies the best chance of staying ahead and diversifying into future products and markets.
Green transition involves decarbonising processes and products all along the supply chain, as well as reducing the carbon that products require in use.
Transformation that is investment-led both boosts GDP directly and adds to productive capacity.
The transformation would: add some £8-20 billion in output to UK manufacturing and its supply chains; create some 400,000 to 1 million jobs in the economy as a whole; generate 37,000 to 90,000 jobs in UK manufacturing, with a further 34,000 to 83,000 jobs created in the supply chain.
Moreover, the report shows that new jobs stand to be of high quality, well paid, and fit for the 21st century.
Selka Added “We have seen through the Covid-19 pandemic that when Government engages with manufacturers that change can be implemented quickly. With strong national guidance and the right structure put in place by the UK Government and fully integrated into an Industrial Strategy, we are well placed to become world leaders in Green manufacturing.We need continued investment in resources like the High Value Manufacturing Catapult to spur progress. The possibilities for growth are substantial. UK manufacturers are ready for this challenge”
