Are You Committed to Becoming Net Zero?

By September of this year, all those who wish to bid on government contracts above £5million per annum will have to have committed to the government’s plan of net zero by 2050 and have published a carbon reduction plan. Organisations wishing to bid on such contracts that have failed to disclose their plans will be excluded from the bidding process. This comes as part of new measures being introduced by the government requiring businesses to commit to reducing their emissions by half by 2030 and to be net zero by 2050 or sooner, before being able to bid for any government contracts.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become more than a by word across industry with firms being asked to detail how they plan to reduce carbon emissions, become more sustainable and to take all matters of biodiversity seriously and incorporate into company business plans. Ethical procurement is now an essential part of the procurement strategy nationwide for more and more businesses with the UK government looking to lead the way. Currently the government spends almost £300billion each year on procurement and therefore requiring firms who wish to bid on government contracts to detail, report and commit to the reduction of carbon emissions before being able to bid for public work, is an essential component in the bid process.

More and more firms are now having to invest in environmental management systems along with having to set out what their carbon reduction plan actually looks like. For larger firms this is nothing new, having to self-report parts of their carbon emissions (known as Scope 1 – direct and Scope 2 – indirect owned emissions).

These new rules, however, aim to go much further requiring the reporting of some Scope 3 emissions to include business travel, employee commuting, transportation and waste. The message is clear – What are your carbon reduction plans and are you committed to becoming net zero?