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• Major Labour donor Dale Vince has called for a shake-up of the UK's net zero strategy, arguing billions of pounds could be redirected to other priorities.
• Vince wants the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero scrapped, with climate policy returning to the Treasury and the Department for Business and Trade.
• The government insists net zero is creating jobs, attracting investment and strengthening Britain's energy security.

The UK's net zero strategy has become the centre of a fresh political debate after one of Labour's biggest donors called for a major overhaul of how the government pursues its climate goals. Rather than abandoning net zero, renewable energy entrepreneur Dale Vince has argued that Labour should change its approach, claiming several flagship green policies are placing an unnecessary burden on public finances during the cost of living crisis.

Vince, founder of renewable energy company Ecotricity and a long-time financial backer of Labour, reportedly said the party should drop the term "net zero" and dismantle the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero if Andy Burnham were to become Prime Minister in the future. He argued that responsibility for climate and energy policy should instead return to the Treasury and the Department for Business and Trade, similar to the previous Conservative government's structure.