The Bank of England should do more to combat climate change by offloading fossil fuel assets and investing in a low-carbon economy, green campaigners say in a new report.
Research group Positive Money argues the Bank’s programme of quantative easing (QE) – effectively printing billions of pounds to buy up debt and lower interest rates – has disproportionately helped carbon-intensive companies that are polluting the planet.
Researchers point specifically to the energy sector, where the Bank has been restricted to buying debt from oil and gas companies, while purchasing none from renewable providers. It also cities the amount of money poured into the financial system at the expense of the so-called “real economy”.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Positive money says that Bank’s mandate to secure financial stability “looks incoherent over time unless it considers the long-term viability of the economy” and argues instead for ‘green QE’ to ensure the Bank of England’s mandate is “hardwired for sustainability and climate change”.
One of the most controversial proposals set out by the group is for ‘overt monetary financing’, whereby the Government prints money to spend directly on green projects.
“This approach is illegal under the Lisbon Treaty,” notes The Independent, “but the UK will not be bound by this once it leaves the EU.”
Last year Norway’s $1 trillion sovereign wealth fund announced it was taking to steps to divest entirely from its fossil fuel portfolio and the Swiss and Dutch central banks already look at environmental, social and governance criteria when considering some investments.
-
Political cartoons for January 19Cartoons Monday's political cartoons include Greenland tariffs, fighting the Fed, and more
-
Spain’s deadly high-speed train crashThe Explainer The country experienced its worst rail accident since 2013, with the death toll of 39 ‘not yet final’
-
Can Starmer continue to walk the Trump tightrope?Today's Big Question PM condemns US tariff threat but is less confrontational than some European allies
-
The former largest iceberg is turning blue. It’s a bad sign.Under the radar It is quickly melting away
-
How drones detected a deadly threat to Arctic whalesUnder the radar Monitoring the sea in the air
-
‘Jumping genes’: how polar bears are rewiring their DNA to survive the warming ArcticUnder the radar The species is adapting to warmer temperatures
-
Environment breakthroughs of 2025In Depth Progress was made this year on carbon dioxide tracking, food waste upcycling, sodium batteries, microplastic monitoring and green concrete
-
Crest falling: Mount Rainier and 4 other mountains are losing heightUnder the radar Its peak elevation is approximately 20 feet lower than it once was
-
Death toll from Southeast Asia storms tops 1,000speed read Catastrophic floods and landslides have struck Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia
-
Can for-profit geoengineering put a pause on climate change?In the Spotlight Stardust Solutions wants to dim the sun. Scientists are worried.
-
How will climate change affect the UK?The Explainer Met Office projections show the UK getting substantially warmer and wetter – with more extreme weather events
