Policy Adviser - Industrial and Commercial Decarbonisation

If you’re interested in making a difference to people’s lives, the Treasury can offer you an exciting opportunity to influence decision making that affects the whole of the UK. Working at the heart of government, we collaborate across government to promote responsible public spending and drive strong and sustainable economic growth.

About the Team

The Climate and Environment Team (CET) acts as the focal point for HM Treasury’s work on climate change, net zero and the natural environment. The team leads on embedding domestic climate risk, net zero and environmental policy considerations into the work of the department. We work with teams in tax, spending, economics, trade, fiscal, financial services and financial stability to use the range of levers which Treasury controls. This ensures the government has affordable and economically efficient plans to achieve its legal commitments under the Climate Change Act 2008 and Environment Act 2021.

We advance Treasury interests across some of the biggest policy opportunities and challenges facing the UK. This includes; climate mitigation and adaptation, decarbonising heat and industry, water company regulation, waste sector reform, implementing England’s agricultural transition plan and reforming our domestic environment policy. Including through new statutory targets for the recovery of the natural world.

We lead engagement with spending control for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). We also work closely with the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), Cabinet Office and No10 on the government’s overall climate change strategy and plan. We support international colleagues in their efforts to galvanise global action on climate and nature.

About the Job

Key responsibilities for the role include:

1. Developing expertise in Industrial and Commercial Decarbonisation: You will be the Treasury’s key point of contact, identifying and promoting HMT interests in this policy area and helping design the strategy for the next Parliament.
2. Building and maintaining constructive relationships: engaging with colleagues across the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to ensure their plans are clear, costed and represent value for money; HM Treasury to ensure HMT’s economic strategies are aligned with ambitions to decarbonise industry; and industry and investors to understand the impact of your decisions.
3. Scrutinising spending proposals and supervising the delivery of existing schemes to ensure policies are delivering as expected and responding proactively when required. This will involve making decisions using robust evidence, understanding the role of Government in the sector and advising seniors and ministers.
4. Using strategic thinking and analytical skills to ensure we have a clear strategy for industrial decarbonisation policy. This will involve considering the role of industry in the wider economy, putting clear structures around analytical work, and using the right metrics to communicate complicated policy and its economic context.

We are advertising for a role within the Heat and Industrial Decarbonisation branch which offers an exciting opportunity to be at the heart of government policy making to reshape the UK’s business and industrial energy use. It will provide the post-holder the opportunity to directly shape policy for one of the largest causes of carbon emissions in the UK, in a supportive environment that encourages innovation, independent thinking, and a focus on delivering value for the UK taxpayer.

About You

You don’t need to be a policy professional, have any specific qualifications, or prior experience/knowledge of these policy areas to apply for this role. We are looking for people who have the right set of skills for the role, who demonstrate the values of our organisation, and who are motivated to come and work with us on a range of issues that are key to the UK’s economic prosperity and resilience. The post-holder will be well supported by line management and the wider team, and training on spending control and reviewing cases will be provided.

HM Treasury is proud of a diverse and inclusive work environment, committed to fairness and the promotion of equality of opportunity for all. We know that having a range of experiences, ways of working and thinking makes us a stronger organisation, better at developing policy that is reflective of the communities we serve. We embrace different views and experiences and value the fresh perspective that people from a variety of circumstances bring to the work we do. We welcome applications from candidates who have not previously worked for the Civil Service, mid- and late-career changers with transferrable skills, people from all backgrounds and circumstances regardless of disability, ethnicity, LGBT+ identity and socio-economic status.

Some of the Benefits our people love!

• 25 days annual leave (rising to 30 after 5 years), plus 8 public holidays and the King’s birthday (unless you have a legacy arrangement as an existing Civil Servant). Additionally, we operate flexitime systems, allowing employees to take up to an additional 2 days off each month
• Flexible working patterns (part-time, job-share, condensed hours)
• Generous parental and adoption leave packages
• Access to a generous Defined Benefit pension scheme with employer contributions of 27% Access to a cycle-to-work salary sacrifice scheme and season ticket advances
• A range of active staff networks, based around interests (e.g. analysts, music society, sports and social club) and diversity (e.g. women in the Treasury, ethnic minority network, LGBT* network, faith and belief network)

For more information about the role and how to apply, please follow the apply link.

If you need any reasonable adjustments to take part in the selection process, please tell us about this in your online application form.