Climate change agreements
The climate change levy is a tax on the use of energy in industry, commerce and the public sector, with offsetting cuts in employers' National Insurance Contributions and additional support for energy efficiency schemes and renewable sources of energy. The aim of the levy is to encourage users to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.
Climate Change Agreements allow energy intensive business users to receive an 80 per cent discount from the Climate Change Levy, in return for meeting energy efficiency or carbon saving targets.
More detailed information about the climate change levy can be found on the HM Revenue & Customs website.
Consultation on the Climate Change Simplification project
The Climate Change Simplification Project reviews Defra’s three major climate change instruments – EU Emissions Trading Scheme, Climate Change Agreements, and the proposed Carbon Reduction Commitment – with a view to eliminating avoidable overlap, simplifying existing regulations, and ensuring that the regulatory burden on the economy is kept to a minimum. The department is consulting on the recommendations of the review. [Further information]
Further details
The following pages give additional information on the scheme:
See also:
- UK Emissions Trading Scheme - details of how CCA holders can use the UK registry to buy or sell allowances
- Changes to UK ETS rules to
provide for dealing with errors in CCA reporting
(8 KB) - UK ETS Rule change for CCA participants to provide for adjustments regarding double trading in EU ETS and UK ETS
- UK ETS Rule change to provide for an extension of the deadline for reconciliation to 7 February 2005
- Details of the Commission Decision on the UK application for the temporary exclusion of CCA participants from the first phase of the EU ETS have been published.
- The Government has published the revised provisional list of installation level allocations as part of the UK National Allocation Plan (NAP) for the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Those installations wishing to apply for temporary exclusion from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme on the grounds of a current Climate Change Agreement should see the EU ETS webpages.
External links
There are a number of other web pages or sites which give other information relevant to the climate change levy package:
- The Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000 and the Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2001. Schedule 1 to the Regulations lists Part A(1), A(2), and B processes.
- Information on the proposed Enhanced Capital Allowances scheme - important for companies intending to make investments in energy saving technologies
- Information on the CHP Quality Assurance Programme, which provides for assessment of CHP schemes - good quality CHP schemes will be eligible for exemption from the climate change levy.
- The HM Revenue and Customs web site has further information relating to the design and implementation of the Levy.
Contacting Defra
If you want further information regarding the Climate Change Levy or climate change agreements, then you should first consult the pages indexed above. If you then need to contact Defra, please do so at the following:
Climate and Energy: Business and Transport (CEBT)
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Area 4B Ergon House
c/o Noble House
17 Smith Square
London SW1P 3JR
Email: levy.agreements@defra.gsi.gov.uk
Tel: 020 7238 4713/4710 (direct line)
Fax: 020 7238 6471
Page last modified: 19 December 2007
Page published: 01 December, 2005