The UK National Audit Office (NAO) has issued its analysis on how central government bodies have implemented the TCFD-aligned disclosure requirements introduced by HM Treasury.
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, summarised: “The emerging climate reporting requirements are helping public bodies assess the risks to service resilience. Our report points to early good practice in maximising the value of this work.”
In particular, the study found that TCFD-aligned reporting has the “potential to deliver significant benefits” to public bodies, and many entities reporting under the framework have strengthened their approaches to climate-related risks.
Of the public sector bodies that responded to the NAO survey, 94% said they consider climate risks relevant to them, and 61% said climate change is a principal risk or a component of a principal risk.
Moreover, 82% identified relevant physical climate risks to their estates, while 79% identified risks to their workforces and service delivery and half identified a relevant risk that their climate policy or strategy fails to reach net zero.
The NAO highlighted examples of emerging good practice, in particular that climate disclosures are most effective when there is an integrated response across government profession and a clear ownership of the risks and disclosures.
It highlighted the importance of considering a broad range of climate risks and ensuring there are the necessary capabilities – through training or external resources – to fill in any gaps.
The NAO recommended that the Treasury agree a plan for monitoring and support to develop high-quality climate disclosures in the public sector moving forward, and to ensure the relevant guidance and training materials are easy to access.