Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the Conservative party, has admitted it will be "impossible" for the UK to reach net zero by 2050 - a target made law by Theresa May in 2019.
Despite the goal being set by her own party previously, Badenoch has now acknowledged it cannot be reached "without a serious drop in our living standards or by bankrupting us", the BBC reports.
Previewing a speech later today, Badenoch said: "We're falling between two stools - too high costs and too little progress.
"Net zero by 2050 is impossible.
"I don't say that with pleasure. Or because I have some ideological desire to dismantle it - in fact, we must do what we can to improve our natural world.
“I say it because anyone who has done any serious analysis knows it can’t be achieved without a serious drop in our living standards or by bankrupting us. And responsible leaders don’t indulge in fictions which are going to make families poorer.
“This is what happens when politics turns into fantasy. Maybe some of it will change. But it doesn’t look promising.”
Badenoch is set to confirm the party’s new position on net zero as she announces a series of commissions to lay out the party's policy platform, covering areas including net zero, culture, justice and immigration.
Her comments, The Times reports, put the Conservatives more in line with Reform UK, with Nigel Farage's party pledging to scrap net zero targets completely.
But Badenoch is not seeking to abandon net zero all together, instead promising to "deal with the reality" of the target.
A Labour spokesperson, the BBC reports, said: "Kemi Badenoch claims she's ready to 'deal with reality' while remaining in complete denial about the reality of the Tories' appalling record in government.
"The Tory leader's position is at odds with her own historic views. In government, she openly championed net zero.
"It's clear the Conservatives stand for nothing and have learned absolutely no lessons. They haven't changed."