VIDEO: CBI's chief economist Rain Newton-Smith explains why the net zero transition is inevitable, desirable, and affordable
Rain Newton-Smith is chief economist at Britain's biggest business group the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), which speaks on behalf of around 190,000 companies collectively employing almost seven million people.
With a career that has taken in spells at the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee, the International Monetary Fund and Oxford Economics, Newton-Smith is one of the country's leading economic experts, and since joining the CBI, one of her core focuses has been on the transition to a net zero, sustainable economy.
At BusinessGreen's Net Zero Festival last week, Newton-Smith set out the economic case for net zero in the UK - the necessity, benefits and challenges - and argued the transition is not only desireable and inevitable, but also, crucially, affordable. Her keynote speech, and the interview which followed with the BBC's energy and environment analyst Roger Harrabin, can be watched in full above.
All of the panel debates, keynote speeches, and presentations from the Net Zero Festival - which took place over three days from 29 September 2021 featuring hundreds of top speakers from business, politics and academia - are now available to watch again on demand by signing up for free on the Net Zero Festival website.
