15 July 2019 | Herpreet Kaur Grewal
A select committee's report into energy efficient buildings highlights the "inadequacies of government policy in addressing carbon emissions", according to the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC).
UKGBC was responding to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee's report Energy efficiency: Building Towards Net Zero.
John Alker, director of policy & places at the UKGBC, said: "This is the second independent report in less than a week that has highlighted the inadequacies of government policy in addressing carbon emissions from buildings. The committee points out the irony that improving energy efficiency in buildings is one of the cheapest ways of meeting our legally binding carbon targets, which creates huge health and economic benefits. And yet policy is still falling well short of the mark.
"The good news is that there are clear and immediate opportunities for government to address this failure. Most obviously by driving better energy performance in new housing in the imminent update to building regulations, and using the Comprehensive Spending Review to kick-start much-needed investment in our inefficient existing stock. Without urgent policy action, achieving net zero for buildings will only become more difficult and far more expensive."
UKGBC provided written and oral evidence to the select committee's inquiry.
Earlier this week, a report by the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) said that the UK action to curb greenhouse gas emissions is lagging far behind what is needed even to meet previous less stringent emissions targets.