Senior Tory backbencher Tim Yeo has put forward a plan to amend the Coalition Government's Energy Bill in order to introduce a decarbonisation target for the power sector by 2030. However, the plan to impose such a carbon emissions target for the energy industry was defeated in the House of Commons by a vote of 290 to 267.
Ministers have said that such a target would place too many restrictions on business at a time of economic difficulty, with Energy Minister Michael Fallon suggesting that a legally binding target could force some generating plants out of business and drive up costs for those industries struggling to compete against lower energy costs abroad.
If it had been passed, the proposed amendment would have made sure that almost all electricity was generated from carbon-free sources by 2030. The fact that this amendment was rejected has led to environmental campaigners once again questioning David Cameron's pledge to lead the "greenest Government ever".
The Government has said that it has the power to include a target in future secondary legislation, but will only consider it after deciding its next carbon budget covering the 2028-2032 period. This means that the decision to include a target will not happen until after the next election in 2015.
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