Article date:13 July 2010
Written by:Jose Espinosa
Sustain has criticised the Government's green energy initiatives following news from the Fuel Poverty Action Group, which predicts that thousands more households will be forced into fuel poverty (July 12, 2010).
The group, which is a Government advisory body, says that with rising unemployment and increasing fuel prices many more people will be unable to pay their heating bills.
Sustain believes that, while price is a significant factor, another important element is changing people's behaviour so the total amount of energy used in the household is reduced, thus significantly reducing bills.
Peregrine Fraser, director at Sustain, says:
"Millions of homes still lack the most basic levels of insulation, and the standard of our old housing stock is way behind the efficiency levels that we demand of new homes as a result of building regulations.
"The emerging Government policies are contradictory. The new feed in tariffs (FIT) and forthcoming renewable heat incentive (RHI) will be widely taken up but demand no level of energy efficiency in the home of the owner. This was not the case under the Low Carbon Buildings Programme which it replaced. So now millions of pounds of tax payer's money will subsidise the generation of renewable energy that would not be needed in the first place if demand was cut.
"The Community Energy Savings Programme (CESP) has its heart in the right place as it focuses resources on the most fuel poor households and does so in a way that demands a more 'whole-house approach' with an emphasis on energy efficiency. But it is a complex scheme that requires some top up funding from local authorities which may not be forthcoming as we face more public sector spending cuts.
"The great hope is the Green Deal which is the Government's answer to funding the extensive measures required to upgrade our existing housing stock. Here there is a potential role for the utility companies to subsidise home energy efficiency improvement measures for the fuel poor.
"The downside to all these measures is that the Government, in its early policy thinking, does not seem to value behaviour change and is focusing on measures installed. Many studies show that you can install all the technology you like, but if you don't change behaviour, you barely save anything."
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