The Energy Security and Net Zero Committee of the UK Parliament has urged the government to remove the term net zero from the department's official title and to scale back its use in routine communications.

The department said there are no plans to rename the department and described the debate as a distraction from tackling climate change and the shift to clean power.

Chaired by Labour MP Bill Esterson, the committee argued that the phrase has become a distraction and called on ministers to make climate messaging less technocratic and more focused on broader social benefits.