Our First Five Year Plan 2021-26
In July 2019, amid widespread calls for acknowledgement of the climate emergency and a drive for more ambitious climate action, the WMCA Board adopted a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2041. In 2020, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the WMCA set out a #WM2041 consultation document, which outlined high-level principles for the region’s net zero transition and summarised short-, medium- and long-term actions required to meet the adopted target.
Subsequently, the WMCA Board endorsed the first Five Year Plan for 2021-26, providing a high level, top-down analysis of the West Midlands economy’s carbon emissions and what could be done to reduce carbon emissions to meet the target of net zero by 2041. The central ‘Accelerated’ scenario at the heart of the plan recommended 15 sub-sector target interventions across domestic, commercial, industrial, transport and land use sectors.
The Five Year Plan has proved to be an invaluable guiding document for decarbonisation efforts across the WMCA and the wider region. It has enabled the WMCA to negotiate further devolution of powers and resources, and built a foundation upon which we can deliver, enable and influence decarbonisation efforts across the region. However, progress to date has not been commensurate with the targets set in 2021. We are currently reviewing progress towards the 15 goals set out in the first Five Year Plan But we know that for a wide range of reasons, we are not making sufficient progress on any of our goals.