On-site & Micro News

Wednesday 03 March 2010

The Greener Homes programme aims to help homeowners install micro-generation and make houses more energy efficient

Climate Change minister Joan Ruddock was forced to defend the government's plans to help householders install micro-generation and energy efficiency measures yesterday.

A heated debate over the Warm Homes, Greener Homes programme, which was announced yesterday (see this NewEnergyFocus.com story), took place during a panel session at the Ecobuild conference, as Conservative shadow minister for the environment Greg Barker branded it a "watered down" version of his party's policy.

Under the scheme, householders are provided with loans, which stay with the property rather than the homeowner, to cover the costs of retrofitting.

Mr Barker said that making homes energy efficient was a vital first step before fitting micro-generation. "There's no point putting renewables on energy inefficient homes," he said.

Ms Ruddock claimed that the idea would actually have far more effect than Conservative proposals to spend £6,500 on each home in Britain.

"Six and a half thousand will not get you micro generation - what people need is tailored schemes," she said and added that it was "more realistic" to treat less houses to a better standard. She predicted that by 2020, seven million homes would have been given an "eco-uplift," which would be in line with the growth of specialist skills.

"This moves with industry and skill levels and what people themselves may want to have on their home," she said.

Slow progress

Liberal Democrat shadow energy and climate change secretary Simon Hughes, also on the panel along with Greenpeace executive director John Sauven, agreed with this assessment but criticised the government for moving so slowly.

"This has taken place 12.75 years into a 13 year labour government, but at least it has happened," he said.

"We need a scheme to make all British homes energy efficient," he added. "We have a massive mountain to climb and the priority should be public buildings - schools and hospitals."

Impact

However, much debate was focused on what the scheme could actually achieve in the next few years, with both Greg Barker and John Sauven referring to the need to focus on a "low carbon present" rather than a low carbon future.

Mr Barker said it would be impossible to show leadership to major carbon emitters in the developing world if the UK kept "missing" its climate change targets.

"We need to be less arrogant and preachy. We've developed a currency of targets - we keep signing up to them without certainty we'll meet them," he said.

"We need to convince developing countries that they can have prosperity with a low carbon model and to put in place technology transfer and practical investment on ground."

Mr Sauven concurred with the need to make immediate impacts on climate change and expressed dismay that the UK did not seem to take targets seriously.

"It's easy to set targets for 2020 or 2050, but what is going to happen now? We're missing all these targets," he said.