UK premier mulls scrapping some key green policies

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) – British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is reportedly considering weakening some of the country's green commitments.

The premier is expected to make an announcement soon to set out the changes in the green polices which could also include delaying a ban on the sales of new petrol and diesel cars, BBC reported, citing multiple sources.

In a statement late Tuesday, the premier reaffirmed the government's commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, but in a "more proportionate way."

"As a first step, I'll be giving a speech this week to set out an important long-term decision we need to make so our country becomes the place I know we all want it to be for our children," noted Sunak.

"For too many years politicians in governments of all stripes have not been honest about costs and trade-offs. Instead, they have taken the easy way out, saying we can have it all."

He stated that realism doesn't mean "losing our ambition or abandoning our commitments – far from it."

Speaking to BBC early Wednesday, Home Secretary Sulla Braverman backed the expected changes by the government, saying: “We're not going to save the planet by bankrupting the British people.”

The shift is expected to spark wide-ranging criticism not only from the opposition and environmentalists but also inside the Conservative Party.

In late June, Zac Goldsmith, a Foreign Office minister responsible for Asia, energy, climate, and the environment, resigned from his role, accusing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of being "uninterested" in the environment.

Meanwhile, licensing new oil and gas exploration is another controversy that has met backlash.