I won’t make Britons cut out meat to meet climate goals, says Starmer

Prime minister’s response comes after climate experts called for Britons to cut their meat consumption by 260g a week – the equivalent of two kebabs

Keir Starmer has skewered efforts by his chief climate change adviser to encourage people to eat less meat by reducing their intake by the equivalent of two kebabs a week.

The prime minister was famously vegetarian for 30 years and did not let his children eat meat until they were 10 but has insisted that he does not want to get involved in people’s personal decisions on how they live their lives.

Sir Keir was challenged after remarks by Emily Nurse, head of net zero at the Climate Change Committee.

In a recent interview, she said: "We are absolutely not saying everyone needs to be vegan. But we do expect to see a shift in dietary habits to get to net zero.”

Sir Keir and Lady Victoria were vegetarians (David Fisher/Shutterstock)

The reduction she was suggesting was the equivalent of two kebabs or meat-based fry-ups a week.

But Sir Keir rejected the idea despite his own history of vegetarianism, which was seemingly downgraded to pescatarianism when he appeared on a live cookery show and made salmon tandoori last year.

He said: “I'm not in the business of telling people how they should run their lives. I am absolutely clear that we are going to get to clean power and absolutely keep our commitment to net zero because it is so important for the next generation and generations to come. That does not mean telling people how to run their lives. That is not the right way to go about it.”

However, his anti-nanny state position has come as a surprise for some after Sir Keir’s government initially proposed a ban on smoking outdoors in public spaces including pub gardens.

The move at the time was described as an infringement of personal liberty with little or no health benefit, and health secretary Wes Streeting subsequently restricted the plans to areas such as those around schools and hospitals.

There are also questions about whether the prime minister will continue with the hardline on net zero being championed by his energy secretary Ed Miliband.

The government has focussed on energy with its plans to hit net zero targets. It has already cancelled new oil and gas projects in the North Sea, unveiled new powers to approve onshore renewable energy projects and agreed a number of solar farms.

This article previously stated that the government reintroduced a plan to ban gas boilers as well as new petrol, diesel or hybrid cars by 2030, but this was not the case. The government has not announced a plan to ban gas boilers from homes, and new hybrid cars will be banned from 2035, under a plan set out by the previous government. New petrol and diesel cars will be banned from 2030.