The UK will embark on the road towards a net zero carbon economy later this year by mapping tougher emissions targets to match international climate agreements.

Claire Perry, the minister for energy and clean growth, told delegates of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting that Britain would call on its official climate watchdog to lay out a route for tighter carbon controls in a move towards a net zero emissions economy.

The Committee on Climate Change roadmap will follow a report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on how the international community can meet targets agreed in 2016.

Ms Perry said: “After the IPCC report later this year, we will be seeking the advice of the UK's independent advisors, the Committee on Climate Change, on the implications of the Paris Agreement for the UK's long-term emissions reduction targets.”

She also pledged investment of more than £8m for pioneering technology to help tackle global climate change and prepare for the natural disasters which are likely as a result of global warming.

The UK’s Climate Change Act already sets a long-term target of reducing emissions by 80pc from a 1990 baseline by 2050.

But to comply with the Paris Agreement the UK’s ambition will need to strengthen.