Federal Labor has confirmed it will take a mid-term emissions reduction target to the next election, saying that just aiming for net zero emissions by 2050 will not be enough to tackle climate change.

While the party is yet to decide whether to adopt a 2030 or 2035 target, climate change spokesman Chris Bowen indicated the mid-term target would be more ambitious than the government’s current target of reducing emissions by 26 per cent to 28 per cent by 2030.