Thank you for downloading the more or less podcast, with a programme that interrogates

the numbers firmly but politely.

Last week, Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister of the UK, made a major speech announcing

changes to his government's net zero strategy.

Net zero refers to the aim of emitting as few greenhouse gases as possible, and offsetting

any that we do emit by planting trees and such like, in order to stop making climate

change even worse.

The UK aims to hit net zero by the year 2050, but it is not alone in such ambitions.

More than 70 countries around the world, including the biggest polluters such as China, the

US and the European Union, have set net zero targets.

During the speech, Rishi Sunak announced delays to government policies on phasing out petrol

and diesel vehicles and fossil fuel boilers, but he still said he was committed to hitting

the UK's net zero target by 2050.

As part of his argument, he pointed to the UK's record in cutting greenhouse gases, and

how it compares internationally.

That's especially true, because we're so far ahead of every other country in the world.

We've had the fastest reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in the G7, down almost 50 percent

since 1990.

France, 22 percent.

The US, no change at all, China, up by 300 percent.

Our loyal listeners wanted to know whether these claims stack up.

I spoke to Dr. Hannah Richie, deputy editor at R-World in Data, a researcher at Oxford

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