The future of, well, everything in society is related in some way to the future of energy.

That was Chris Skidmore MP, author of the government's Net Zero review and one of the guests I'll be speaking to on this podcast.

He makes an important point. How we achieve net zero is more than just a political or

environmental decision. It is one that will have huge societal impacts. How we get our energy

translates to how we move around, how we heat our homes. It's a reminder that the energy

transition has many tradeoffs as we navigate achieving net zero while protecting the

well-being of people and industry, especially at a time of the cost-of-living crisis.

Might hydrogen be part of the answer? In this podcast, I'll be speaking with those working in

government, NGOs, and industry about how to unlock this technology. I'm Kate Andrews,

the Spectator's Economics Editor.

Welcome to a special edition of Spectator Briefings, sponsored by National Gas.

Hydrogen has long been proposed as a solution to achieve net zero by 2050.

On the surface, it sounds great.

Hydrogen is a simple atom and one of the most abundant.

Hydrogen can be extracted from an H2O molecule, using methods such as electrolysis, or more controversially, by using natural

gas, which in turn creates a carbon dioxide byproduct, most of which can be captured and

stored. The hydrogen then burns clean, making it a greener alternative to methane or natural

gas for home and businesses. I spoke to Chris Stark, Chief Executive of the Climate Change Committee,

an organization that has long advocated using every technological route at our disposal when

achieving net zero. I started by asking him about that mix and where hydrogen fits in.

Thank you for that introduction, because I think that is a good description of what we've

tried to do at the

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