The Climate Change (Reporting Bodies) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024

Citation and commencement

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Climate Change (Reporting Bodies) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2024.

(2) These Regulations come into operation on 3^rd May 2024.

Interpretation

2.  In these Regulations—

“climate change adaptation report” means a report under regulation 4;

“climate change mitigation report” means a report under regulation 5;

“publish” means publish in electronic form;

“reporting body” means a body specified in the Schedule;

“sent” means sent in electronic form.

Reporting bodies

3.—(1) The Schedule (reporting bodies) has effect.

(2) Reporting bodies are specified public bodies for the purposes of section 42(1) of the Climate Change Act (Northern Ireland) 2022.

Climate change adaptation reports

4.—(1) Every reporting body must prepare reports which include—

(a) an assessment of the current and predicted impact of climate change in relation to its functions;

(b) a statement of the body’s proposals and policies for adapting to climate change in the exercise of its functions;

(c) a statement of the time-scales for implementing those proposals and policies; and

(d) an assessment of the progress made towards implementing the proposals and policies set out in any previous climate change adaptation report.

(2) The first report must relate to the period of four years beginning with 1st January 2026.

(3) Subsequent reports must relate to the period of five years beginning immediately after the end of the period to which the previous report relates.

(4) Reports must be prepared and sent to the Department not later than one month after the end of the period to which the previous report relates, or in the case of the first report 31st March 2026.

Climate change mitigation reports

5.—(1) Every reporting body must prepare reports which include—

(a) a statement, in respect of each of the three preceding financial years, of the amounts and the sources of the body’s greenhouse gas emissions;

(b) a statement of the body’s proposals and policies for reducing those amounts and otherwise for mitigating the effects of climate change in the exercise of its functions;

(c) a statement of the timescales for implementing those proposals and policies; and

(d) an assessment of the progress made towards implementing the proposals and policies set out in any previous climate change mitigation report.

(2) A report must, unless the Department otherwise agrees, use—

(a) as the reporting body’s greenhouse gas baseline year, the financial year ending 31st March 2025, and

(b) as the reporting body’s baseline greenhouse gas emission amounts, the amounts in that year.

(3) The first report must be prepared and sent to the Department not later than 31st October 2025.

(4) Subsequent reports must be prepared and sent to the Department every third year not later than 31st October.

(5) In relation to the first report—

(a) paragraph (1)(a) has effect as if the words “each of the three preceding financial years” were “the financial year ending 31st March 2025”;

(b) paragraph (2) does not apply.

(6) References in this regulation to a financial year are to be construed in accordance with section 39(6)(e) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(1) whether or not a body uses that financial year.

Guidance

6.—(1) The Department may issue guidance to reporting bodies on their functions under these Regulations.

(2) The Department may publish any guidance issued under paragraph (1).

Matters to which reporting bodies must have regard

7.  Reporting bodies must have regard to (among other things) the following, so far as relevant—

(a) the most recent report under section 56 of the Climate Change Act 2008(2) (report on impact of climate change);

(b) the most recent programme under section 60 of that Act (programme for adaptation to climate change in Northern Ireland);

(c) the desirability of co-ordinating the proposals and policies referred to in regulation 4(1)(b) or 5(1)(b) with corresponding proposals and policies in other parts of the United Kingdom, in the Republic of Ireland or elsewhere; and

(d) guidance under regulation 6.

Co-operation on preparation of reports

8.  A reporting body or any other public body may co-operate with another reporting body in the preparation of a report under these Regulations.

Joint reports

9.  Two or more reporting bodies may prepare a joint report under these Regulations.

Corrected reports

10.—(1) If it appears to a reporting body or to the Department that a report sent to the Department by the reporting body requires correction, the reporting body must send a corrected report to the Department as soon as practicable.

(2) A corrected report must state the reasons for each correction.

Publication of reports

11.  Every reporting body and the Department must publish any report sent by the reporting body to the Department under these Regulations.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs on 12^th April 2024

Jane Corderoy

A senior officer of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs