Beyond COVID-19

As the UK emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, it is on a pivot. It can choose to either revert to ‘business as usual’, where the UK risks being locked into a high-carbon future or it could instead choose to make a bold move towards ‘better’ - a society in which health, sustainability, safety, resilience and wellbeing are more highly valued. 

In November 2020, the NEPC’s net zero project published the report Beyond COVID-19: laying the foundations for a net zero recovery which set out an engineering perspective on opportunities for decarbonisation as the UK responds to the COVID-19 crisis identifying five foundations for a net zero recovery.

These are summarised in five foundations below.

Foundation 1

Ensure recovery packages work together as a whole to pivot the UK towards a net zero economy

Foundation 2

Apply outcomes based procurement processes for all public sector infrastructure and building projects with a focus on low carbon

Foundation 3

Prioritise diversity and inclusion for jobs and skills to reverse Covid-19 impacts and help build net zero capacity and strengthen long term capability

Foundation 4

Drive digital transformation as an essential enabler of net zero and resilience

Foundation 5

Deploy cross-sectoral systems approaches to policymaking that underline the interconnectedness of different policy areas and economic systems