“The critics have a point when they say you risk your economic power [and] society’s wellbeing by being ideological about Net Zero,” he said. His comments will raise questions about Britain’s approach to Net Zero, which official forecasts show will add hundreds of billions of pounds to government spending over the next few decades. Kaeser, who previously ran German industrial giant Siemens before becoming Chairman of its energy division, warned that European companies were becoming uncompetitive because of green energy policies. Germany has a goal of hitting zero carbon emissions by 2045, a more aggressive target than Britain’s legally enshrined 2050 deadline. Kaeser, who is also the Chairman of Daimler trucks, attacked the EU’s approach of reaching Net Zero by regulation.