Ashden is part of the Warm This Winter coalition, which brings together leading anti-poverty and environmental organisations across the UK, to set out priorities for the Energy Bill. We are calling for practical measures that will help people with fuel costs now and ensure energy security and lower energy bills in the future.
As Warm this Winter points out – delivering energy efficiency in homes is one of the few near-term actions that can be taken to reduce dependence on gas. Further, without action on housing and buildings, there is no plausible path to achieving the fifth carbon budget or meeting the 2030 statutory fuel poverty target.
Reducing energy demand through energy efficiency measures will be a crucial step in building resilience against international fuel prices, improving energy security, and cutting carbon emissions, alongside more cheap, homegrown renewables.
Tenants in the private rental sector (PRS) in the least efficient homes are paying as much as an additional £950 per year compared to the average. New energy efficiency standards would save the average tenant £570 per year and would produce aggregate annual savings of £1.75bn.
Ashden, along with Warm this Winter are asking MPs to attend the debate today and support amendments to:
- Stop energy firms from forcibly transferring people onto expensive pre-payment meters (PPMs) by banning the forced movement to PPMs, and
- Put an end to cold, damp homes for the most vulnerable by raising minimum energy efficiency standards of private rented sector homes.
Commenting on the Energy Bill which is being debated in Parliament today, Cara Jenkinson, Cities Manager at Ashden, said:
“Unfortunately, like some of our leaky older homes, there is a huge hole in the Energy Bill – measures to tackle energy efficiency.
“The government claims to be concerned about energy security but there has been a massive drop-off in the number of homes insulated in the last eighteen months, leaving families exposed to bills that are still very high, and the country addicted to fossil fuels.
“The Energy Bill provides an opportunity to retrofit our buildings, providing a triple win of lower bills, reduced carbon emissions and good green jobs which the government should seize.”
