In the UK, the soaring cost of energy has created new urgency on the government to insulate more homes. Its houses now hold the title of the worst insulated in Western Europe. As energy prices soar, especially with the average annual energy bill projected to rise by £149 to £1,717, concerns grow for the 28 million homes across the country that contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Heating these homes represents an astonishing 18% of the UK’s emissions in 2021.
David Cameron’s ill-judged 2015 move to scrap mandatory home retrofit programmes has left the UK at the bottom of the international energy efficiency league. This inability or unwillingness to act has resulted in an increasing reliance on natural gas. Consequently, some 80% of British homes continue to use it for heating. All the while, international gas markets have been up and down, sending energy bills through the roof. Even so, the UK’s overall reliance on gas has not shifted dramatically in recent years.
This is particularly unfortunate as energy efficiency installations have witnessed a freefall since their high water mark in 2012. During that period, government subsidies supported 2.3 million annual advancements. Today, that number has dropped to fewer than 100,000 annually. And the government’s plan to insulate a further 5 million homes seems ever more out of reach without some serious action.
Rishi Sunak’s administration is on the defensive. They have dropped proposals that made it mandatory for landlords to retrofit their homes to at least an EPC rating of C or better. Additionally, the dissolving of an energy efficiency taskforce recently has environmental activists and industry professionals all in a tizzy.
That next wave of energy costs is particularly troubling given that many of these residents live in substandard, poorly constructed, uninsulated homes. When gas prices increase, the cost of providing warm shelter at home increases right along with it.
Emma Pinchbeck, Chief Executive of Energy UK, made it clear that now is the time to focus on heating our homes and improving our insulation.
“It would be good to see government plans on heat,” – Emma Pinchbeck.
Pinchbeck followed up by stressing the need to move on reducing demand for imported gas. This smart move will spare our economy and everyday consumers the pain of rising prices. She fights for a transition to 100% renewable energy and greater investment in home insulation as both climate and public health moves.
Environmental justice advocates have long been contending that unless we act, we will lock in this crisis for generations to come. Doug Parr, senior policy adviser for Friends of the Earth, reacted nervously at what looked to be an emerging trend.
“Unless the government rolls out a nationwide home insulation scheme, boosts renewables, and introduces a social tariff for energy bills, this crisis will persist winter after winter. Let this be a wake-up call for the new government to start delivering on its promises, which will cut bills.” – Doug Parr.
Ed Miliband’s spokesperson recently announced such a move, going big with plans to double the warm homes initiative from £6.6 billion to £13.2 billion over this parliament. This initiative has the potential to be the largest capital investment in British history. Miliband’s team argues that this investment will be critical in bringing down energy bills in the long term.
As usual, Jessie Ralston of the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit expressed alarm about where people will be living as we go through this transition. She pointed out that slow progress on energy efficiency and heat pumps is making it harder to free ourselves from gas.
“A lack of progress on energy efficiency and heat pumps means that our reliance on gas hasn’t fallen much in recent years, despite the volatility in the international markets forcing bills to skyrocket. The new government has made steps on renewables, but not confirmed its plans for home heating or insulation yet, and there is clearly no time to waste.” – Jess Ralston.
With everyday residents preparing for sky-high energy prices this winter, the demand for government action has reached a fever pitch. Yet the current state of UK homes provides a ticking time bomb that could blow apart public finances. It has dire impacts for environmental sustainability.