The United Nations’ chief environmental scientist has raised criticism against the United Kingdom’s cut in support for clean, renewable energy. Professor Jacquie McGlade of the UN said that the UK is sending a “worrying signal” to the coming UN climate summit in Paris by making a marked shift away from clean energy despite the world rushing towards it.

McGlade believes that the UK has abandoned its leadership on climate change with its previous actions of supporting the fossil fuel industry, while about 150 countries are providing pledges to halt the impacts of climate by promoting clean energy. In Europe, the UK being one of the most influential countries, any inaction on climate change could potentially reduce the general enthusiasm to provide international mitigation efforts, the IFL Science stated.

"What's disappointing is when we see countries such as the United Kingdom that have really been in the lead in terms of getting their renewable energy up and going - we see subsidies being withdrawn and the fossil fuel industry being enhanced," McGlade told the BBC News.

"What I'm seeing worldwide is a move very much towards investment in renewable energy,” she said. “To counterbalance that you see the withdrawal of subsidies and tax breaks for fossil fuels,” McGlade added.

The UK’s action may deliver the wrong message to other countries joining the Paris climate summit in November, McGlade said, as well as to the preparatory meeting in Bonn in October. "It's a very serious signal - a very perverse signal that we do not want to create."

However, the UK government promised that it will be using the most cost-effective way to meet its carbon emissions targets. The government added that it would reset previous energy policies, to show how it will meet carbon targets, at the same time providing fewer subsidies to renewable energy.

A spokesperson from the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change said that the country is “absolutely committed to getting a global deal in Paris.” The decision comes after the £1.5-billion overspend on the notional budget for clean energy, the BBC reported.

Ministers are also aiming to force reduce energy bills by creating new solar and wind projects without subsidy. However, the clean energy industry said that to meet the goal is impossible at the moment.

The subsidy cuts have already caused three solar firms to collapse since the announcement in the summer. Over 1,000 jobs from the clean energy industry have been lost, and investors have begun withdrawing investments for infrastructures in the UK.

The UK spokesman pointed that the subsidies have helped reduce the cost of renewable energy, which allows more people to install technologies like solar panels. To ensure that subsidies are provided to major priorities would help renewable energy technologies to compete with other technologies to give “the best value for money for hardworking bill payers," the spokesman added.

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