ICE comment on the Climate Change Committee's Adaptation Progress Report

In response to the Climate Change Committee's Adaptation Progress Report, Sam Gould, the ICE’s director of policy and external affairs, said:

“Once again, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) has said that the government isn’t moving fast enough to adapt the UK’s infrastructure for our changing climate.

“With extreme weather events on the rise, a significant portion of the UK’s agricultural land, rail and road infrastructure, homes and businesses face flood risk. The CCC also predicts that heat-related deaths will rise.

“Postponing action puts infrastructure, businesses, homes, and people at risk. On the other hand, investing now to improve the country’s climate resilience will be cheaper in the long run.

“It will help protect people, homes, businesses and the infrastructure we all rely on, and strategic investment will also have positive economic benefits.

“The ICE echoes the CCC’s call to improve coordination, monitoring, and how targets are set. These are basic measures that could make a real difference.

“Making the Adaptation Reporting Power mandatory for infrastructure owners and operators, as the ICE has recommended, would give the government much needed information to begin prioritising the most pressing needs.

“To make progress, the government must adequately fund adaptation in this year’s Spending Review, or the challenges the country faces will only get worse.”

Notes to editors

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