UK Act of Parliament 2008 United Kingdom

Climate Change Act 2008

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At a glance

Enforced by

Environment Agency, NSTA, OPSS, OEP

What's here

27 compliance obligations, 10 practical guides across 2 topics · 3 journeys · 22 statutory instruments

Penalty landscape

1 of 27 obligations carry an unlimited fine. 26 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Who this Act binds

Business-side actors with duties under this Act, ranked by how often they appear.

  • Any Person 3
  • Director or Officer 1

Plus 23 non-business duties on Crown ministers, regulators, local authorities or tribunals — shown collapsed under each section below.

Step-by-step journeys using this legislation

Walkthroughs that take you from a real business situation to compliance.

Relevant guidance

Practical guides for businesses affected by this Act, ordered by how closely they engage with it.

Direct — cites this Act

1 guides

Supporting — topic alignment

2 guides

Mentioned in related content

7 guides

Other Acts binding the same actors

For each actor bound by this Act, the other UK Acts that bind them most often. Useful for understanding the full compliance landscape facing each role.

Any Person also bound by 749 other Acts (top 5 shown)
Directors and Officers also bound by 224 other Acts (top 5 shown)

What this Act requires

Sections that create concrete duties on businesses or carry penalties. Procedural and definitional sections are folded into the “Browse other sections” expander at the bottom of each group. Click any section title to read the source text on legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1 — Carbon target and budgeting

s.001

The target for 2050

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must ensure the UK reaches Net Zero by 2050 Crown / Minister / Government department
s.005

Level of carbon budgets

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must set and meet carbon budget levels Crown / Minister / Government department
s.011

Limit on use of carbon units

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must limit carbon units used to meet climate targets Crown / Minister / Government department
s.016

Annual statement of UK emissions

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must publish annual UK greenhouse gas emissions reports Crown / Minister / Government department
s.020

Final statement for 2050

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must report on 2050 net zero target achievement Crown / Minister / Government department
s.031

Procedure for regulations under section 30

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must follow specific procedures when making aviation/shipping regulations Crown / Minister / Government department
Browse 20 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 2 — The Committee on Climate Change

s.033

Advice on level of 2050 target

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Climate Change Committee must advise government on 2050 carbon targets Statutory regulator
Browse 8 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 3 — Trading schemes

s.048

Procedure for making regulations

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • National authority must consult and seek advice before making regulations Crown / Minister / Government department
Browse 10 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 4 — Impact of and adaptation to climate change

Browse 8 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 5 — Other provisions

Browse 16 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 6 — General supplementary provisions

Browse 13 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Schedules

Browse 7 other Schedules — structural / supplementary
Read the full Act on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)

Official guidance

Authoritative sources published by regulators or government explaining this legislation.

Enforcement and responsible bodies

The regulators that administer or enforce this legislation.

Environment Agency

Primary

Environmental protection in England. Regulates waste, emissions, water quality, flood risk, and environmental permits for industrial activities. Enforces environmental law and issues …

NSTA

North Sea Transition Authority

Licenses and regulates the UK oil and gas, offshore hydrogen, and carbon storage industries. Issues petroleum production licences and CO2 storage licences. …

OPSS

Office for Product Safety and Standards

Product safety regulator responsible for ensuring consumer products are safe. Enforces product safety regulations, UKCA marking requirements, and works with market surveillance …

OEP

Office for Environmental Protection

Independent body established post-Brexit to scrutinise environmental law and investigate complaints about public authorities' failures to comply with environmental law in England …

Connected legislation

22 statutory instruments

These instruments amend, apply, or refer to this Act. They may not all create direct business obligations.

Secondary legislation (22)

+ 7 more statutory instruments

Explore more

Browse legislation

Find other UK business legislation with related guidance.

Regulators

Learn more about the bodies that enforce this legislation.