Climate Change Act 2008

National reports and programmes

56 Report on impact of climate change

(1) It is the duty of the Secretary of State to lay reports before Parliament containing an assessment of the risks for the United Kingdom of the current and predicted impact of climate change.

(2) The first report under this section must be laid before Parliament no later than three years after this section comes into force.

(3) Subsequent reports must be laid before Parliament no later than five years after the previous report was so laid.

(4) The Secretary of State may extend the period for laying any such report, but must publish a statement setting out the reasons for the delay and specifying when the report will be laid before Parliament.

(5) Before laying a report under this section before Parliament, the Secretary of State must take into account the advice of the Committee on Climate Change under section 57.

(6) The Secretary of State must send a copy of each report under this section to the other national authorities.

57 Advice of Committee on Climate Change on impact report

(1) It is the duty of the Committee on Climate Change to advise the Secretary of State on the preparation of each of the Secretary of State’s reports under section 56.

(2) The Committee must give its advice under this section in relation to a report not later than six months before the last date for laying the report before Parliament (see subsections (2) to (4) of section 56).

(3) The Committee must, at the time it gives its advice under this section to the Secretary of State, send a copy to the other national authorities.

(4) As soon as is reasonably practicable after giving its advice under this section the Committee must publish that advice in such manner as it considers appropriate.

58 Programme for adaptation to climate change

(1) It is the duty of the Secretary of State to lay programmes before Parliament setting out —

(a) the objectives of Her Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom in relation to adaptation to climate change,

(b) the Government’s proposals and policies for meeting those objectives, and

(c) the time-scales for introducing those proposals and policies,

addressing the risks identified in the most recent report under section 56.

(2) The objectives, proposals and policies must be such as to contribute to sustainable development.

(3) Each programme under this section must be laid before Parliament as soon as is reasonably practicable after the laying of the report under section 56 to which it relates.

(4) The Secretary of State must send a copy of each programme under this section to the other national authorities.

59 Reporting on progress in connection with adaptation

(1) Each report of the Committee on Climate Change under section 36 to which this section applies must contain an assessment of the progress made towards implementing the objectives, proposals and policies set out in the programmes laid before Parliament under section 58 (adaptation to climate change).

(2) This section applies to the report in the second year after that in which the Secretary of State lays the first programme under section 58 before Parliament.

(3) After that, this section applies to the report under section 36 in every second year after that in which the Committee last made a report to which this section applies, subject to any order under subsection (4).

(4) The Secretary of State may by order provide that this section shall apply to the report under section 36 in the year specified in the order and in every subsequent year.

(5) An order under subsection (4) is subject to negative resolution procedure.

60 Programme for adaptation to climate change: Northern Ireland

(1) It is the duty of the relevant Northern Ireland department to lay programmes before the Northern Ireland Assembly setting out—

(a) the objectives of the department in relation to adaptation to climate change,

(b) the department’s proposals and policies for meeting those objectives, and

(c) the time-scales for introducing those proposals and policies,

addressing the risks identified in the most recent report under section 56.

(2) The objectives, proposals and policies must be such as to contribute to sustainable development.

(3) The second and each subsequent programme under this section must contain an assessment of the progress made towards implementing the objectives, proposals and policies set out in earlier programmes.

(4) Each programme under this section must be laid before the Northern Ireland Assembly as soon as is reasonably practicable after the laying before Parliament of the report under section 56 to which it relates.

(5) The relevant Northern Ireland department must send a copy of each programme under this section to the other national authorities.