The flagship has sunk! The hopeful and inspiring pledge of £28bn towards green projects that sat at the forefront of Labour’s election plan is no more. I am genuinely gutted – it felt visionary and exciting in a time when politics is mired in petty argument and declining prosperity. Finally we had something significant to look forward to – and having hope for a better future is so important.
I understand, of course, that the economic outlook has become worse and there are pragmatic reasons for the change. But the impact of reduced investment in sustainability will be felt across the country and, as usual, it will be the disadvantaged who feel it most acutely.
Scant provision for critical retrofit
Labour still aims to reach some of its targets and says it remains committed to green growth, but the most difficult and impactful work is being scaled back. The pledge had been to spend £6bn a year on retrofitting homes with energy efficiency improvements – now it is barely £5bn over the whole parliament. I’ve written before about the danger of reaching our net zero targets without insulating homes – the risk that private sector investment and the market turbo-charges zero-carbon energy but leaves people struggling with cold homes in the rush to reach these targets.
The risk is we will bypass the benefits of warm homes for the poorest in the race to net zero, leaving 15 million homes paying more for their energy than they need to.
Insulating and retrofitting homes is complicated and expensive. Each home is different and each household has different needs. It means we have to learn to use new technologies and heat our homes differently. But such measures are vital for reducing household energy consumption, keeping costs down and tackling climate change.
And it’s much-needed insulation that will feel the brunt of Labour’s 80 per cent cut to funding for green projects. Only five million homes (out of an original target of 19 million) will be retrofitted with energy-efficiency measures by 2030. So my fear may well be coming true: we will bypass the benefits of warm homes for the poorest in the race to net zero, leaving 15 million homes paying more for their energy than they need to – on average about £335 extra each year according to the Climate Change Committee.
UK investment lagging behind
Let’s be clear that Labour’s commitment (if they stick to it) is still significantly higher than the Conservatives’ and it’s sensible to rethink commitments when circumstances change. But the decision to slash the number of homes we will insulate is a serious mistake that will embed inequality and leave millions in cold homes struggling with sky-high fuel bills and the well-documented impacts on physical and mental health that ensue.
The US and EU are investing heavily in their green transition despite the challenges, because they understand the long-term benefits it will bring to people, the economy and the planet. It is exciting and forward-thinking and Labour’s original commitment went a long way towards matching that excitement and making the UK a genuine leader in a green transition that benefitted those who need it most.
Instead we will see timid, incremental change – not nearly enough and certainly not something to get excited about.
