He was joined in the debate by the economic secretary to the Treasury, Chloe Smith MP, professor in science and technology at Sussex University, Mariana Mazzucato, and venture capitalist from WHEB Partners, Mark Preston. The discussion was chaired by the Director of Green Alliance, Matthew Spencer, who was previously Head of Government Affairs at the Carbon Trust.

The lively conversation centred on how to most effectively incentivise investment and development of green technologies. In particular a lot of debate took place over the most effective mechanisms to deliver long term value in creating a low carbon economy. James Smith expressed the importance of making the right energy choices, and explained how the government can support these. This echoed his recent thoughts which are found in his viewpoint on the Carbon Trust website and Huffington Post.

The Carbon Trust is working actively to make green innovation happen today, in the UK and around the world. It is clear that clean technology will play a huge role in the future of the global economy, creating new low carbon infrastructure and jobs. The Carbon Trust's mission is to help accelerate this transition, which is being done through projects such as the Offshore Wind Accelerator.