Green economy recovery packages for the coronavirus crisis will repair the global economy and put the world on track to tackle climate breakdown, but time is running out to implement the changes needed, new analysis has shown. The study from Oxford University compared green stimulus projects with traditional stimulus, such as measures taken after the 2008 global financial crisis. It found that found green projects create more jobs, deliver higher short-term returns per pound spent by the government, and lead to increased long-term cost savings. Many of the projects that could create new jobs in the UK are “shovel-ready”, compliant with social distancing requirements and could be started quickly, said Cameron Hepburn, director of the Smith School of enterprise and the environment at Oxford University and lead author of the study. He cited energy efficiency programmes to insulate the UK’s draughty housing stock, the building of electric vehicle charging networks, redesigning roads for more cycling, flood protection and planting trees.

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The Guardian