Better regulation could see house building and CO2 reductions go hand in hand
The scrapping of the Zero Carbon Homes policy in July 2015 [1] has left a policy vacuum that urgently needs filling, says the Solar Trade Association.
The solar trade body has submitted its response to the government’s ‘Cutting red tape review of house building’ [2], calling for the government to set out a clear and ambitious regulatory roadmap for sustainability standards in new build.
The government’s focus is now on maximising build rate however lower standards lock in higher carbon emissions, as well as higher energy bills for occupants, for decades to come. Higher standards provide a level playing field on which different emissions reduction options can compete and there is no evidence that they stop the construction industry from building houses, says the Solar Trade Association. The cost of solar energy has fallen dramatically in recent years and new build is an ideal way of taking the technology forward.
The STA’s response highlights that the scrapping of Zero Carbon Homes policy came just one week after the government’s official watchdog, the Committee on Climate Change, recommended in its 2015 progress report to Parliament that the government should “implement the zero carbon homes standard without further weakening” [3].
The response also highlights that in the absence of suitable standards through national Building Regulations, it is important that local authorities continue to require house builders to use their planning powers to incorporate minimum levels of on-site renewable energy in new housing developments [4].
Mike Landy, Head of Policy at the Solar Trade Association commented:
“The scrapping of Zero Carbon Homes policy in July 2015 was one of the most incomprehensible acts of the new government, given that we were nine years into a ten year plan that hundreds of companies were working towards. It has left a policy vacuum and the government has yet to explain the rationale for its decision.”
“Solar energy is perfectly suited to new build and ought to become a standard feature on new housing. The 70% cost reductions since 2010 means that any additional build costs can be recouped within years through lower energy bills – builders need to work with surveyors, estate agents and mortgage lenders to ensure these benefits are recognised”.
“Local authorities have a responsibility to help achieve the 80% carbon emission reduction required by the Climate Change Act. We encourage them to use their planning powers to require house builders to use solar energy as a highly effective and cost-effective way of contributing to that goal.”
Notes to Editors
[1] The scrapping of Zero Carbon Homes policy was made via the Government’s Productivity Plan which included the following announcement (see para 9.17, p46):
“The Government will repeat its successful target from the previous Parliament to reduce net regulation on house builders. The government does not intend to proceed with the zero carbon Allowable Solutions carbon offsetting scheme, or the proposed 2016 increase in on-site energy efficiency standards, but will keep energy efficiency standards under review, recognising that existing measures to increase energy efficiency of new buildings should be allowed time to become established.”
Full details of the Productivity Plan can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/443897/Productivity_Plan_print.pdf
Scotland introduced higher building standards in October 2015 as part of its plan to reduce future carbon emissions (a 21% CO2 reduction for the domestic sector compared with the 2010 standards). These go beyond the standards introduced in England in 2014 and many developers are now looking to solar as a cost-effective way of helping to meet them.
http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Built-Environment/Building/Building-standards/techbooks/s62015
[2] The Cutting Red Tape review of the house building sector describes itself as “a government review led by the Cabinet Office, DCLG, BIS, working with other government departments and regulators to identify and remove unnecessary regulatory barriers to growth and associated costs to the house building sector, while ensuring necessary protections are maintained. It will build upon previous work of the government to identify an initial list of regulatory burdens on house builders and identify opportunities to reduce these.” Responses are invited on the following dedicated website:
https://cutting-red-tape.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/house-building/
The Solar Trade Association submitted its response and it was published on the above website on 22 January 2016 at 4.31pm and can be seen in full in Appendix A of this press release. One of the STA’s member companies, CEO of Viridian Solar Stuart Elmes, has also made a recent submission on 20 January 2016 at 5:13 pm.
[3] The statutory Committee on Climate Change published its report, Reducing emissions and preparing for climate change: 2015 Progress Report to Parliament, on 30th June 2015:
https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/reducing-emissions-and-preparing-for-climate-change-2015-progress-report-to-parliament/
[4] The Planning and Energy Act 2008 was introduced through a private members bill by Michael Fallon MP, now Secretary of State for Defence. It states the following: “A local planning authority in England may in their development plan documents, and a local planning authority in Wales may in their local development plan, include policies imposing reasonable requirements for— (a) a proportion of energy used in development in their area to be energy from renewable sources in the locality of the development;”
Such requirements sometimes come under the name “Merton Rule” as the approach was first pioneered by the London Borough of Merton in 2003. The Act can be found at:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2008/21/pdfs/ukpga_20080021_en.pdf
For further information or to request an interview, please contact:
Name: Sonia Dunlop
Title: Communications and Public Affairs Manager
Tel: 0203 637 2946 or 07970 795 278
Main line: 0203 637 2945
Background on the Solar Trade Association:
The mission of the Solar Trade Association is to empower the UK solar transformation. We are paving the way for solar to deliver the maximum possible share of UK energy by 2030 by enabling a bigger and better solar industry. We represent both solar heat and power, and have a proven track record of winning breakthroughs for solar PV and solar thermal.
Appendix A: Solar Trade Association response to the Cutting Red Tape review of house building
Mike Landy says:
22nd January 2016 at 4:31 pm
Solar Trade Association response:
I want to start by stating clear support for the submission made by the UK Green Building Council on 11 January. Like them, we do not accept that efforts to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions from new homes have been a barrier to house building. Nor should they be seen as an economic or financial barrier, as any additional costs of building to higher standards are recouped often many times over through lower energy bills. Furthermore these additional costs have fallen dramatically in recent years, in large part due to the rapidly declining cost of solar energy.
The beauty of good regulation is that it provides a level playing field on which different solutions can compete. The Zero Carbon Homes policy provided industry with a clear objective, a clear timescale and a reasonably clear trajectory, at least until it was tinkered with. Abandoning the policy nine years into a ten year plan is tragic for those many companies that took government at its word and invested heavily to meet the goals. For many it feels like betrayal, especially when added to the array of other changes made since May 2015. The government should remember that the construction industry is not just made up of house builders – there’s a huge supply chain that has invested in developing new technologies and skills based on the policy.
The recent floods are yet another reminder that our country is at risk from climate change. We urgently need to reduce carbon emissions – we even have a legal obligation to do so with the Climate Change Act. Yet incredibly the government’s announcement scrapping the Zero Carbon Homes policy came just one week after its official watchdog, the Committee on Climate Change, recommended in its 2015 progress report to Parliament that the government should “Implement the zero carbon homes standard without further weakening”.
Every new building that goes up should be looking to minimise its carbon footprint; surely we have enough of an emissions legacy to deal with from our existing building stock. Government should be facilitating that process, encouraging that process and yes, where appropriate, mandating that process. It should certainly not be weakening the framework, yet we are moving backwards. If government is unwilling to act, then local authorities that have responsibility for future generations in their area must be allowed to use the planning powers at their disposal to pick up the mantle.
I am often told by people outside our industry that solar panels should now be mandatory on all new buildings, indeed a government minister said that to me recently (in private, without prompting). Of course I agree – it makes sense in so many different ways, together with improved fabric. Within a few years solar will be our cheapest source of electricity – already now, it’s a no-brainer in new build, saving occupants hundreds of pounds on their annual energy bills.
With the scrapping of Zero Carbon Homes policy we now have a policy vacuum that urgently needs filling. We call on the government to set out a clear and ambitious regulatory roadmap for sustainability standards in new build and we are confident that solar can play a key role in achieving the required emissions reductions. We collectively owe it to future generations.
Mike Landy
Head of Policy, Solar Trade Association
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