The UK government’s response to the energy price crisis right will be critical to preserving political and public support for net zero policies.

This report sets out seven steps the government needs to take – to ensure momentum on climate change is maintained in 2022 and to build on 2021’s ambitious net zero strategy.

The first test the government faces is to show it can help households weather the immediate energy cost crisis without losing track of its net zero commitment. And it also needs to show how it can reconcile its net zero target with its other objectives of providing secure, affordable energy in the longer term. Failure to do this risks fuelling discontent on its back-benches and undermining the cross-party political consensus on the need for action for climate change that has existed for 30 years.