This report contains the draft advice of He Pou a Rangi – the Climate Change Commission. It includes advice on the first three emissions budgets and the government’s first emissions reduction plan. Together, these lay out the course for reducing emissions in Aotearoa and set the direction of policy that Aotearoa takes to get there.

The draft recommendations fall into four categories:

1. budget recommendations – these contain draft recommendations on the levels at which to set the first three emissions budgets, the breakdown by gas, the proportion of domestic emissions reductions and removals and the limit on offshore mitigation for meeting emissions budgets
2. enabling recommendations – these recommendations are crucial for ensuring that processes are in place so that the actions to address climate change are enduring
3. policy recommendations – these recommendations inform the direction of policy needed in the Government’s emissions reduction plan. There are two sub-categories:
   • time-critical necessary actions – these are the policy recommendations that are considered critical for being able to deliver on the proposed emissions budgets
   • necessary actions – these are further policy actions that support the time-critical recommendations and will be important for meeting emissions budgets.