Senior KPMG partner responds to Sadiq Khan’s COP26 call for London to get more powers
Anna Purchas, a senior Partner at KPMG in London, wrote to Morning Wire today as she responded to our article ‘Sadiq Khan will use the upcoming COP26 to vouch for cities like London to have greater powers and funding.’
Dear Morning Wire,
I read with interest that our London mayor Sadiq Khan will use the upcoming COP26 to vouch for cities like London to have greater powers and funding, which raises key issues around the importance of enabling cities like London to have greater powers in order to make real progress in meeting our net zero challenge.
Whilst leadership and a top down policy from the Government on net zero is needed, success is only achievable if it is delivered on a local basis which will require greater devolution of powers and funding.
There is already some great work being done around the country to learn from but in many cases, hands are being tied by lack of funding or regulatory levers needed to make things happen.
Just as with other critical areas, such as skills and housing, the green agenda sits side by side with the devolution and levelling up agendas.
As we head to COP26, it is important to go with a strong message from London highlighting the power of its supply chain and the interdependencies it creates across the country, as well as the exciting role it could play as a centre for green finance.
So many London businesses have signed up to the Race to Zero but there is more to be done, and encouraging all London businesses and those companies in their supply chains sign up it could be transformative for the whole of the UK.
The pandemic gives our UK cities a catalyst for change to drive recovery and renewal into a new future and the green agenda will have a huge role to play in this, but only if our regional leaders are given greater powers to drive their local agendas on the road to net zero.
Anna Purchas
KPMG London Office Senior Partner