UK’s growing green economy worth more than £100bn a year, research finds

More than a million jobs, higher wages, nearly half a trillion pounds in investment in the pipeline – the UK’s green economy is powering ahead, according to research by the country’s leading business organisation. The net zero economy, which is worth more than £100bn a year, benefits all of the UK, according to the CBI Economics analysis commissioned by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit thinktank, despite critics who want to abolish the UK’s net zero targets . Net zero workers also enjoy higher wages, topping £43,000 a year on average, about 11% higher than the national average of £39,000. Viking windfarm in Shetland. Photograph: Dave Donaldson/Alamy Louise Hellem, chief economist for the CBI, said: “Clean power and decarbonisation are already a significant and growing part of the UK’s industrial base. Across energy, manufacturing, services and supply chains, the UK has the expertise to build on this strength and capture even greater commercial opportunities.” About 308,000 people are employed directly in businesses such as solar panel installation, home insulation, wind turbine manufacturing and electric vehicles. When their supply chains and related businesses are taken into account, this reaches 1.1m jobs, and accounts for £105bn in “gross value added”, a measure of economic activity similar to GDP. That equates to nearly 4% of the UK’s economic output. An estimated £455bn of potential investment in energy infrastructure is also in the pipeline, the report found. …