Queen Elizabeth II announced a bill to boost energy efficiency in the U.K.'s businesses and homes on Tuesday, while also increasing its share of renewable energy.

In a speech addressing Parliament, the Queen said her government would support the construction of a high-speed railway network and continue working to secure a global climate change agreement in Mexico in late 2010. According to press reports, the energy bill will also include a drive toward smart grid development, regulation for coal-fired power plants, and a green investment bank to direct funds to green power projects.

The speech follows earlier comments by David Cameron, the U.K.'s new prime minister, on his desire to run the "greenest government ever" that would decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent this year.

The U.K. government has a goal of reducing emissions by 34 percent below 1990 levels by 2020, with an 80 percent reduction by 2050. Projections released Monday suggest the U.K. will come close to meeting its carbon budgets from 2008 to 2017, but will fall short in the 2018-2022 period unless the new coalition government aggressively promotes green power and energy efficiency.

Cambridge Econometrics predicted the U.K. would also fall short of its 2020 goal of sourcing 30 percent of its electricity from renewable sources. Instead, it would likely see a 15 percent share in renewables in 2020.

Against this policy activity, a recent poll suggests public concern for climate change in the U.K. is waning. In 2006, those climate change interest hovered at around 80 percent in a YouGov survey, compared to 71 percent in 2009 and 62 percent now. The number of "climate change agnostics" is also growing: Those who are unsure whether climate change is happening and view scientists as being divided increased to 33 percent, from 25 percent in 2007.

Image CC licensed by Flickr user Jon's pics.