The role of independent bodies in monitoring,analysing and advising the government on its environmental and energy policiesremains vital to enabling greater intervention from the judicial system,according to Robert McCracken QC.
'I am sceptical of the role of courts in judicialruling. There is greater scope for courts to intervene if the Committee on Climate Change does a better job, either in courts or in parliament,' he says.
'There is no shortage of lawyers or interestgroups that are willing to challenge the government on climate change policy.Challenges to policy are more feasible now.'
The role of the legal system and judiciary inpolicing climate change law in the UK has come under the spotlight in legalproceedings over exceeding European Union limits on pollution.
Transport for London policy head Elaine Seagriffrecently revealed that many of these transgressive 'pollution hotspots' are in the UK capital.
Pressure from independent committees and the public is the most powerful leverage society has over the government's formation of climate change policy, on this point legal and government figures concur.
The role of independent bodies in monitoring, analysing and advising the government on its environmental and energy policies remains vital and key to enabling greater intervention from the judicial system, according to Robert McCracken QC.
'I am sceptical of the role of courts in judicial ruling. There is greater scope for courts to intervene if the Committee on Climate Change does a better job, either in courts or in parliament,' he says.
'There is no shortage of lawyers or interest groups that are willing to challenge the government on climate change policy. Challenges to policy are more feasible now.'
The role of the legal system and judiciary in policing climate change law in the UK has come under the spotlight in recent legal proceedings over parts of the country exceeding European Union limits on pollution.
Transport for London policy head Elaine Seagriff recently revealed that many of these transgressive 'pollution hotspots' are in London.
Solicitor Pamela Castle says, 'There is recognition from the Department of Energy and Climate Change of problems in tackling climate change and they need the ability to hold offices to account; but there are certain impediments in doing so, including the development of firm policies and targets. More public engagement is needed in fiscal incentives.'
The Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition government has set ambitious targets within its first year in office, including setting the goal of reducing emissions by up to 50 per cent below 1990 levels by 2025.
The Committee on Climate Change was established in the UK to oversee the government's adherence to the UK Climate Change Act that secured Royal assent in 2008, providing a legal framework for ensuring the government meets its climate change commitments.
When asked what will bring the UK back on track to complying with the act, responses from Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Norman Baker MP and McCracken highlighted the importance of the role of the public in guiding policy and pulling the government up on its environmental compliance.
The Coalition government formed an agreement earlier this month in which both constituent parties pledged to cooperate on delivering a raft of policy measures designed to address environmental and climate change challenges.
Julia King, vice president of Aston University, warns that governments risk being derailed in meeting these measures unless it does more to address the risks involved.
She says, 'There are positive things happening on the clean energy technology front, but there is not enough help in spurring the innovation and addressing the risks associated with new technologies.'
Whether the 18 environment-related pledges in the Coalition Agreement will materialise in real terms will rely on sufficient economic stimulation. Chief strategist at Danish pension fund ATP Ole Beier Sorensen has highlighted that turning the government's recently raised emissions reduction target into a reality rests on clarifying policy details outlining how a UK green economy will be stimulated.
'The public is waiting for a strong lead from the government and there is still a pusillanimous attitude,' says McCracken.
McCracken and Baker emphasised that the exercise of control over public consumption, partly through means of stricter advertising standards, could swing the UK into compliance with climate change law.
McCracken says, 'We must exercise control. There is a religion at the moment in public culture, which is that the salvation from material consumption has become a religion.'
Baker adds, 'I suspect that citizen movements are the most likely route to impose pressure on the government to do something about climate change.'
That advertising standards for electric and hybrid vehicles must represent a level playing field compared to conventional vehicles has also been highlighted.
While advertising regulators are quick to interrogate electric vehicle makers on how genuine terms such as 'zero emissions' really are, the same heavy-handedness is absent from the dialogue between the standard agencies and conventional car manufacturers.
King says, 'We are now in a position where we are fighting with advertising standards over the meaning of "zero emissions". Why should electric vehicles be treated differently from other cars?'
Those who set advertising standards and policymakers must be careful not to focus all efforst purely on carbon to the exclusion of other harmful emissions, however, environmental scientist Mike Quinn warns. 'The environmental impacts of transport are viewed as a carbon issue, which is infringing upon legal requirements over air quality as we speak,' he says.
Baker agrees that his Cabinet should not neglect the full spectrum of car emissions: 'I agree we shouldn't get hung up on carbon dioxide to the exclusion of other harmful gases.' He also highlighted that there are instances that call for strict regulation, such as the sound that electric vehicles produce, given that road accidents are the second biggest killer of children under the age of five in the UK.
