The UK government has welcomed 15 new recommendations from the independent Green Jobs Taskforce in a new independent report.
The Taskforce, which was convened by the Business and Education departments in November 2020, has published its findings and recommendations on how the UK government, industry and skills sector can best deliver the green jobs and skills of the future.
Director at National Grid and Member of the Green Jobs Taskforce Rhian Kelly, commented: “Getting the right people and skills in place to achieve the government’s ambitious climate goals is a huge challenge.
“The Green Jobs Taskforce has drawn on insights from across business, trade unions and academia, to identify actions that can have a real impact on building the net zero workforce the UK needs.
“This won’t happen overnight so it’s vital we move from intent to action now and that the report is acted upon with urgency.”
The recommendations include:
- publishing a detailed Net Zero Strategy and using policy to promote good green jobs, skills and competitive supply chains
- industry, the education sector and the UK government working together to ensure green careers advice and pathways into good green jobs
- building on the UK government’s skills reforms to support people to work in the new green economy
The new report assesses how the UK jobs market and the skills sector should adapt to support net zero, from training engineers and construction workers who are building the UK’s world-renowned offshore wind farms and nuclear plants, to the retrofitters who are set to make homes more comfortable and energy efficient.
Green Jobs Taskforce report calls for a holistic approach across the ‘lifecycle’ of green jobs to ensure the UK grasps the opportunities that a green industrial revolution will create, focusing on action to:
- unlock industry investment in good quality green jobs and skills
- promote diversity within emerging low carbon sector and ensure pathways exist for people of all ages to go into green careers
- to ensure a just transition for workers in high carbon sectors.
As part of government’s immediate response to the Green Jobs Taskforce report, it has announced it will set up a cross-cutting delivery group to include representatives from industry, the skills sector and other key stakeholders to oversee the development and delivery of the government’s plans for green jobs and skills.
The evidence collected by the Green Jobs Taskforce, and official recommendations, will now be considered by the government, feeding into the development of government’s Net Zero Strategy, due to be published ahead of COP26 in Glasgow later this years.
The Green Jobs Taskforce report can be read on the UK Government website.
