The rapid development and deployment of low-carbon innovations requires policies to support new technologies. Alongside these, policies are also needed to phase out carbon-intensive activities. Policy measures that phase out high-carbon practices facilitate innovations by creating strong market signals about the direction of travel. In addition, by smoothing the transition process, they can help to avoid sudden, unpredictable changes.
This policy brief uses the case study of the German nuclear phase-out.
It goes on to make the following recommendations for UK policy makers:
- Phase-out policies are required across the economy, not just in the power sector
- The Industrial Strategy should consider how high-carbon technologies and practices will be phased out as well as support low carbon innovations
- Phase-out policies must not be “lost” through the Brexit process
- Map the current policy landscape
Read more about our project on ‘Policy synergies and trade offs for low energy innovation‘.
