Mandelson: 'There is no high carbon future'

Speaking at the Low Carbon Industrial Summit in London today, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Peter Mandelson said, “Low carbon is not a sector of an economy — it is an economy.”

The shift to a low-carbon society, Mandelson said, is more than a way to create green jobs to drive a recovery from the current recession. Rather, he said, “It is about a transformative shift in our economy, and the industrial and business opportunities that will come with that if we equip the UK to compete for them.”

The transformation will affect everyone, he added — from an individual looking to save on energy costs to a corporate organisation making sweeping changes throughout.

“We are on the edge of a low carbon industrial revolution,” Mandelson said. “Everything is going to change. How you manufacture and the services you provide. The skills your employees and members will need. How we all save money in both the private and public sector through energy efficiency.”

A low-carbon economy offers opportunity not only in the form of billions saved in energy expenses but in new markets for technologies and services, he added.

“So the point we want to start at today is this: this transition to low carbon is an environmental or economic imperative,” Mandelson said. “It is also inevitable. There is no high carbon future.”