Labour’s green strategy puts planning reform and home retrofit on the right track

UKGBC responds to the Labour Party’s published plan, ‘Making Britain a clean energy superpower’.
  • UKGBC responds to the Labour Party’s published plan, ‘Making Britain a clean energy superpower’ set out in a speech by Leader of the Opposition Kier Starmer on 19th June.
  • The plan includes details of a potential future Labour Government’s policy on renewable emerging generation, proposals for reforming the planning system, upgrading 19 million homes and cutting household energy bills, and other provisions

Louise Hutchins, UKGBC Head of Policy and Public Affairs, said:

“Keir Starmer is right to say we need to tackle the planning system to be a clean energy superpower and bring bills down. In Parliament, the Labour Party previously tabled an important amendment to align the planning system with the UK’s climate mitigation and adaptation goals to end the decisions currently blocking so much clean development – from infrastructure to low carbon, resilient homes and green neighbourhoods.

“Over 100 UKGBC business members wrote to the Prime Minister and Michael Gove last week calling on them to back this approach in the final stages of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill before the window for action in this Parliament slams shut.”

“We welcome Labour’s commitment to upgrade 19 million cold homes by 2030. Reducing energy wasted from our homes and switching to cleaner, renewable electricity is critical to the UK’s energy security and to sustainably lower household bills. Our analysis shows that we need 80,000 homes retrofitted every month in order to meet our climate commitments – we simply can’t do that without action on this scale.

“The scale of our climate emergency means that we are concerned that Labour would not overturn oil and gas licenses that could be authorised in last months of this Parliament, despite the fact that projects like Rosebank would be producing fossil fuels for decades after the UK needs to wind down our demand for gas-powered cooking and heating in our homes. This contradiction with Labour’s strong retrofit and planning policies risks creating uncertainty and undercutting the very industry and investor confidence they are aiming to build.“

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