New plan to help homes cut emissions starts today

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband has outlined Government’s latest measures to help householders save money and energy as he welcomed 10:10 – a new campaign to cut carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband has outlined Government’s latest measures to help householders save money and energy as he welcomed 10:10 – a new campaign to cut carbon emissions by 10% in 2010.

- Around 90,000 homes in some of the poorest areas in the UK should see an average saving of 20% per year in their emissions through a new community based energy saving scheme which starts today. This amounts to financial savings of around £300 per year off fuel bills.

- In the past year, more than 1.2 million homes have received some form of insulation under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target with enough professional loft insulation installed to stretch from London to Sydney and back. The number of households getting this help through energy companies has been increased, with Government recently increasing the target by 20%.

Responding to the 10:10 campaign, the Department of Energy and Climate Change has confirmed that it is on course to cut its own emissions at its London headquarters by 10% by April 2010 and it will make further reductions through the rest of 2010 and beyond. DECC staff have been encouraged by Ed Miliband to join him in taking up the 10:10 pledge in their homes and lifestyles.

Ed Miliband said:

“As government, we are in the best position to make it as easy as possible for everyone to cut their carbon emissions.

“By signing up to the10:10 campaign, I hope people will be sending a broader message to governments round the world. They need to agree a global deal at Copenhagen that is ambitious in cutting emissions, fair to developing countries and effective in holding countries to their word.

“We will cut emissions in the UK by at least a third by 2020. Concerted action shows the world we are serious about tackling climate change ahead of the crucial climate talks in Copenhagen.”

Government support

Helping householders to make a contribution to cutting 10% in 2010

- A new Community Energy Saving Programme starts today. Around £350 million will be spent by energy companies over the next three years to deliver whole house, whole street energy makeovers concentrating on some of the most vulnerable people in the UK.

- The Carbon Emission Reduction Target (CERT), an obligation on energy suppliers to promote household carbon reductions is operating at a higher level than ever before, with the target recently increased. In 2010 topping up a loft could contribute around 2% to a 10% saving.

- In 2010, we’ll start trialling “Pay As You Save”. This is a new way of paying for whole house energy retrofits as part of our commitment to treat 7 million homes by 2020.

- From today the EU will be phasing out old fashioned 100W and all pearl light bulbs. Money saving energy efficient ones will replace them.

- The government’s ACT ON CO2 website has lots more energy saving advice and top tips to help save 10% in 2010, including a carbon calculator to work out carbon footprints
- www.direct.gov.uk/ActOnCO2
Helping businesses to make a contribution to cutting 10% in 2010

- The Carbon Reduction Commitment will come in to force in 2010 which will affect around 5,000 businesses – including all government departments. It will not only deliver massive carbon savings but businesses taking action will also benefit from lower fuel bills and will yield a benefit to businesses of around £1billion.

- Interest free loans of up to £400,000 are currently available from the Carbon Trust for small and medium size businesses to improve on energy efficiency.
Government’s 10:10 commitment

DECC has committed to reducing emissions from its headquarters in London by 10% by April 2010. We will be achieving this through making changes to the heating and air conditioning systems, more energy efficient lighting.

All government departments have signed up to playing their part in achieving the world’s first carbon budgets, which will set the UK on track to reaching our emissions cuts in 2020 and 2050. Each department is already taking steps to reduce emissions - for example, when the Home Office replaces its fleet cars it has committed to selecting the most efficient, and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport is using software which switches off computers during non-working hours.

In Number 10, reductions are also already occurring – for example, the Downing Street complex has a D rating Display Energy Certificate for operational energy performance. This is well below typical energy use for comparable Grade 1 Listed buildings, 50% of the energy used is from an efficient Combined Heat and Power plant. Energy efficient light bulbs are used wherever possible in staterooms, offices and meeting rooms.

Across Government we will be looking at what more can be done over the coming months.

Extra finance to start flowing for wind power

Three UK-based banks start work today with the European Investment Bank (EIB) on a programme to lend up to £1 billion to onshore wind farms over the next 3 years.

- Up to £1 billion of loans for onshore wind farms
- Up to £10 million of Government grants for offshore wind technology development

Three UK-based banks start work today with the European Investment Bank (EIB) on a programme to lend up to £1 billion to onshore wind farms over the next 3 years.

The cash, part of the additional £4 billion of EIB lending to support UK energy projects announced in the Budget, will help get building started for onshore wind projects which have been hit by the credit crunch, particularly small and mid-sized wind farms.

The banks – RBS, Lloyds and BNP Paribas Fortis – have been teamed up with the EIB by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and HM Treasury, following the announcement in April’s Budget Statement that the Government wanted to get more EIB lending to UK renewables.

Firms can also apply for DECC cash from today to develop offshore wind technology. There will be up to £10 million in grants, part of the £120 million announced in the renewable energy strategy last week to support offshore wind. This is the second round of cash for development of offshore wind technology.

DECC is also confirming today that, subject to agreement on suitable grant offer conditions, it also intends to make an award under the first round of this programme for Vestas Technology UK Ltd’s research and development centre on the Isle of Wight. This proposed award – more than £6 million - would include over £3m of funding from the South East England Development Agency (SEEDA). We expect to make other announcements on awards under this first round of funding shortly.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“Earlier this month we laid out a transition plan to a low carbon economy that included a massive expansion of green wind energy. The resources we are announcing back up our plans with clear actions to ensure we deliver.

“The European Investment Bank funds will help the building start on consented wind farms that could provide 1 gigawatt of electricity, enough to power more than half a million homes.

“The money for the development of offshore wind manufacturing will help us generate green jobs on top of our success as the leading country in the world for the generation of offshore wind.

"Alongside these proposals, we are reforming planning laws, finding new ways of working with local communities and are determined to persuade people that we need a significant increase in onshore wind as part of the UK's future energy mix.

“That is essential for the generation of renewable energy and for Britain to have an industrial future in the production of onshore wind."

Ian Pearson MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury said:

“The £4bn of lending to the energy sector that we announced in the Budget is just part of the £10bn of lending that we hope to see coming into the UK economy from the EIB this year, nearly three times last year's total. I am pleased at the success we are having working in partnership with EIB to provide financing to this and other important sectors.”

EIB Vice President Simon Brooks said:

“The development of the UK’s wind energy capacity will support the European Union’s and national targets for renewable energy generation. As well as helping to reduce greenhouse gasses it will strengthen the security of energy supplies. This initiative underlines the EIB’s long involvement, as the EU’s financing arm, in the UK’s energy sector and reinforces efforts to reduce the impact of climate change”.

Carbon trading vital to climate change success – PM Report

A global carbon trading network will be vital to preventing dangerous climate change, a new report commissioned by the Prime Minister Gordon Brown concluded today.

The report makes clear that without a global system for carbon trading, the ability of countries to avoid dangerous climate change will be limited and the costs of action increased.

The report follows the Prime Minister’s recent proposal on how developed and developing countries can agree new ways to pay for tackling climate change. He urged countries to work together on a global figure of $100 billion a year needed by 2020 to help developing countries reduce their emissions, tackle deforestation and adapt to the climate change already being experienced. The carbon market could provide a significant proportion of that sum.

The Global Carbon Trading report, by the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Carbon Trading, Mark Lazarowicz MP, looks at the role that cap and trade systems can play as part of the global response to preventing dangerous climate change – and the steps needed to expand and link trading systems over the next decade.

Carbon markets themselves will not however be sufficient to successfully tackle climate change and are needed alongside strong domestic action to cut emissions. The UK Government is committed to meeting its required 34% cut in emissions by 2020 through domestic action alone, apart from emissions covered under the EU Emissions Trading System where limits on offsetting are set at EU level. The UK’s Low Carbon Transition Plan, published on 15 July, sets out the domestic actions required to meet its carbon budgets.

Mark Lazarowicz MP said:

“Climate change is an international threat that needs international action. The evidence shows that global carbon trading can deliver substantial cuts in greenhouse gases rapidly and cost-effectively.

“Cap and trade should be combined with targeted regulation, taxation and public finance for comprehensive action. This report proposes action in developed countries at two levels - ambitious national targets and a network of linked cap and trade systems for emitters.

“Reducing emissions in developing countries will be crucial. We need a global system that goes beyond offsetting while delivering financial flows to the developing world. The report shows how we can achieve that.”

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said:
“Developing the global carbon market is vital if we’re to succeed in helping the world avoid dangerous climate change.

“The carbon market can deliver a substantial part of the $100 billion a year needed by 2020 to help developing countries reduce their emissions, tackle deforestation and adapt to the climate change already being experienced.

“So I very much welcome Mark Lazarowicz’s report which shows that with the right reforms and participation, global carbon trading – alongside strong domestic effort - can help the world meet the tough emissions reduction targets as demanded by the science”.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“Domestic action by developed and developing countries is essential to meet the challenge of climate change. So is public finance to help developing countries to adapt to climate change and make the transition to low carbon.

“Carbon trading can also play a role: as a way to get cost-effective emissions reductions and help provide finance to developing countries. This report is an important contribution to showing how carbon markets can do that.

“To make carbon markets work best in tackling climate change, we need a global network, building on the EU emissions trading system and plans in the US and Australia. By making carbon trading work, we can make it far more likely that we tackle dangerous climate change, get cost-effective emissions reductions and get money to the poorest countries of the world."

The report concludes that:

* Cap and trade systems can provide ambitious cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by putting a price on carbon and ensuring that the polluter pays.

* While central to tackling climate change, cap and trade will need to act alongside a range of other targeted policies, such as domestic effort to introduce feed-in tariffs on renewable energy and public finance for developing carbon capture and storage.

* Global carbon trading could reduce the costs of cutting emissions by up to 70%. Potentially, this could allow the world to cut global emissions by an additional 40-50% at the same cost compared to domestic action alone. This would give a greater chance of making the big cuts necessary to stop global temperatures increasing above 2 degrees centigrade – the threshold for dangerous climate change.

* Carbon trading will also provide substantial financial flows to the developing world to support their transition to a low carbon economy.

* Cap and trade systems – like the EU’s - are already operating or planned in over 35 countries in the developed world. These will need to be coordinated and linked to form a global network, creating a more comprehensive, effective international system. Linking the EU and a possible US federal system by 2015 would be ambitious but achievable.

* Advanced developing countries such as China and Brazil could also start to take part in such systems, including key sectors like the power sector. Having more advanced developing countries engaging in sectoral trading could achieve substantial cuts in emissions at low or no net cost to themselves in 2015.

* Scaled-up mechanisms for supporting developing countries to cut emissions are needed that are more efficient and equitable than the current Clean Development Mechanism. These should be designed to provide substantial real emissions reductions that go beyond offsetting and deliver financial flows to the developing world. Using sectoral trading rather than the CDM could reduce the global cost of emission cuts financed through carbon trading by around a half, enabling developed countries to make deeper emissions cuts.

* The international community needs to provide urgent support to developing countries to build capacity for accessing carbon finance, including technical knowledge sharing and funds for measuring, legal and institutional reforms. This could cost up to $5bn in total over the next 10 years and will need to come from non-market sources that are effectively coordinated.

What are carbon markets?
Systems that allow trading between companies or countries are often known as ‘cap and trade’ because they operate by ‘capping’ the total emissions and allowing the participants to ‘trade’ emissions allowances. Each participant must regularly ‘reconcile’ their emissions budgets by ‘surrendering’ an allowance for every tonne of CO2 emitted. This encourages them to reduce their emissions if they can do so for less than the cost of allowances. Alternatively they can comply with the system by buying allowances from elsewhere. The EU ETS is the only functioning national and transnational carbon emissions trading system. Emissions trading systems currently planned in other countries could result in 17% to 35% of global emissions being covered by 2015.

Trading in emissions was started in the United States in 1990. The US trading system for sulphur dioxide reduced emissions by 43% between 1990 and 2007, three years ahead of schedule and at a quarter of the predicted cost. And the EU Emissions Trading System, which is now in its second phase has already started impacting on company decisions to reduce emissions.

Government energy announcements - Greenpeace response

Overview

Responding to today's government energy announcements, John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace, said:

"If this plan becomes a reality, it will create hundreds of thousands of green jobs and make Britain a safer and more prosperous country. This will be good for the British economy and, in the long-run, save householders money as we reduce our dependence on foreign oil and gas.

"Ed Miliband appears to be winning important battles in Whitehall. But it's crucial that these plans now get full cross-party support and more backing from the Chancellor. The renewable energy industry is too important to become a political football and this strategy for green jobs deserves more than the current paltry sums being offered by the Treasury."

Renewable energy

Jim Footner, senior energy campaigner for Greenpeace, said:

"Britain's renewable industry needs to form the cornerstone of our response to the climate crisis. So Ed Miliband should be congratulated for standing up to giant utilities like Eon and EdF and providing this boost to the British renewable sector.

"Now we need cross-party consensus, because this isn't just about hitting vital climate targets. It's also about securing our energy supply, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs and generating a much needed boost for the British economy."

• The UK has one of the best renewable energy resources in Europe. Yet we languish near the bottom of the European league table in terms of our ability to exploit it. The UK currently generates just 5% of our electricity from renewable sources, compared to 12% in Germany, and 27% in Spain.
• It is good news that the Climate Change Secretary has chosen to implement powers introduced last year to set the grid access regime and speed up access to the grid for renewable energy capacity. Renewable energy must get priority access to the grid.
• Ed Miliband has also heeded that calls from across the energy debate to amend the remit of the regulator OFGEM, which has for too long represented a barrier to the development of renewables. OFGEM will now have to include decarbonisation in the face of climate change within its primary duties - an important change.
• The UK's status as a world leader in marine energy technologies is recognised with the allocation of money for further research and development as well as the identification of a ‘Low Carbon Economic Area' in the South West of England, announced in the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy. The budget of just £60 million fails to give this emerging industry the full support it deserves.
• On planning, the strategy proposes measures enable renewable energy applications that currently face years of delay in the planning system to gain quicker approval. It is crucial for the successful implementation of the strategy that these planning reforms (particularly for onshore wind farms) are taken seriously by local authorities considering applications. It is therefore necessary that strategy as a whole, but particularly the strategy on planning gains cross party support.

Low Carbon Industrial Strategy

Robin Oakley, head of Greenpeace's climate and energy team, said:

"If Miliband's vision was to become a reality it would create hundreds of thousands of green jobs and make Britain a safer and more prosperous country. But that won't happen with the paltry budgets being offered by the Treasury. It is scandalous that Miliband's low carbon ambitions, which have potential to create whole new green industries, are met with a budget that is only about half the amount the Chancellor allocated for bonuses for a bunch of failed RBS bankers.

"For years the UK has lagged behind the rest of Europe on renewables. If Britain is to catch up, and to benefit from the economic boost, job creation and security of energy supply that our clean energy resources offer, it will require the Chancellor to get behind Ed Miliband's efforts."

• The Carbon Trust estimates that up to a quarter of a million jobs could be created in the UK through the delivery of the efficiency and renewable energy targets.
• The focus on offshore wind, wave and tidal is right and the recognition that regional development for new clean technologies, with research and supply chain to support then, is sound.
• Britain leads the world in the research on wave and tidal power with some of the pioneering companies sited here. But the only wave project in operation in a commercial environment - designed in the UK - is located in Portugal, because UK support was lacking. Government should follow up this welcome expression of support for marine renewables in the Southwest with more development clusters for renewables and more money to help accelerate the commercialization of the leading designs in these technologies here in the UK.
• More could be done to support the training and development of the construction industry to help deliver a national refit improving British homes, making them warmer, cheaper to run and low carbon. Energy efficiency measures offer nationwide job creation opportunities and long term skilled jobs, especially in the construction sector which has been badly effected by the recession.
• According to reports in February 2009 bonuses at RBS reached £775 million http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/feb/18/rbs-bonuses this highlights the paucity of the total budget of £405 for low carbon industrial development and the spending announced today from that budget that includes only £180 million of direct funding for renewable energy development.

Carbon Budgets

Robin Oakley, head of Greenpeace's climate and energy campaign, said:

"It's a step towards a much more coherent climate policy that each government department will now have its own carbon budget. And it's also good news that Miliband reaffirmed the government's commitment to a 34% cut in emissions by 2020. However, the latest climate science suggests he needs to be much more ambitious in this area and it's vital that the reductions are all genuinely made here in the UK and not replaced with offsets in other countries."

• Following new legislation last year (the Climate Change Act), the Government will have to operate within a ‘carbon budget' in the same way it has to operate in a financial budget. If they go over the carbon budget, they'll have to do something about it.
• There is a new adviser to Government on what these carbon budgets should be - the Climate Change Committee (CCC).
• The UK has to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2050.
• The CCC recommended, and the government agreed, to reduce UK greenhouse gas emissions by 34% by 2020. Although if there is a decent agreement in Copenhagen later this year, this will be increased to around a 42% cut, which is more in line with what we need to avoid dangerous climate change.

Transport

Anita Goldsmith, head of Greenpeace's transport campaign, said:

"After Ed Miliband made such positive statements on renewable energy today, it is a shame to see that the Department for Transport has let the side down yet again.

"It is hard to see how such weak policies will deliver the kinds of emissions cuts we need, and any real progress will be wiped out by the department's ongoing obsession with unrestrained aviation growth."

"It is important not to let the DfT fool anyone into believing that they are driving forward increased vehicle efficiency when in fact they lobbied against this in the EU, leading to weaker targets and slower progress.

"Overall this package tinkers at the edges, whilst letting the real problems embedded within road and air transport go unchallenged. We're hoping that Adonis will soon get his department under control and align it with the wider priorities of the government."

• If plans to expand Heathrow go ahead, it will become the biggest single source of carbon dioxide in the UK and will wreck the Government's chances of meeting climate change targets.
• The Government's own figures show that aviation currently accounts for 13% of Britain's total climate change impact and threatens to undermine all other efforts to cut emissions in other sectors.
• The global warming impact of emissions from aviation are predicted to double from 2006 to 2030.
• By 2050, on this trajectory, the aviation sector alone could use up the UK's entire carbon budget, making it almost impossible for the UK to meet its targets and damaging other parts of the economy forced to make up the difference.
• Small increases in the efficiency of planes will be overwhelmed by an unrestrained growth in flights and including aviation in the ETS will not solve the problem.
• According to a report from Ernst and Young, even in the toughest Emissions Trading Scheme scenario, emissions from the aviation sector would grow by 83% by 2020. T&E background briefing (2007) Including Aviation in the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) page 6.
• Electrifying our road transport network could be a vital step in the fight against climate change. But this must be done alongside radical improvements in vehicle efficiency standards and be accompanied by investment in additional renewable sources of energy generation.
• The DfT lobbied on the recently agreed EU regulations to reduce emissions from new cars to an of average 130gCO₂/km by 2012. The proposed target was originally for 120gCO2/km. There are already cars on the market that can deliver 99gCO2/km or less, such as the VW Polo Blue Motion, as well as petrol-hybrid vehicles that are even lower.
• The electrification of rail and move towards low emissions buses are good initiatives but remain a small part of the overall transport problem. According to the DfT's own figures, rail accounts for 1.7% of total UK domestic transport emissions with buses accounting for 2.3%. http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/energyenvironment/climatechangefactsheets.pdf
• Road transport and aviation remain the biggest problems, with road transport accounting for 92.3% of domestic transport emissions.
• The focus on greener driving techniques also puts the onus on individuals rather than the delivery of the big infrastructure changes that urgently need to take place in the transport sector. Essentially, this is a transparent attempt to pass the buck on to drivers - the very opposite of the sort of leadership we need.

Biofuels

Reacting to new figures on the source of the UK's biofuels, Greenpeace chief scientist Dr. Doug Parr said:

"It is a scandal that 27 million litres of Indonesian palm oil were pumped into our tanks last year, of which not a single drop met the Government's own environmental standard. Companies like Tesco are selling their customers biofuel from unknown sources which could be wrecking the climate and destroying rainforests. It's time for Lord Adonis to abandon this misguided policy and start again".

Key findings of the Renewable fuel agency fourth quarter report, 2008/9:http://www.renewablefuelsagency.org/_db/_documents/RFA_quarterly_report_Apr_2008_Apr_2009.pdf.

• A tenth of the UK's biofuel - 123 million litres - was produced from palm oil over the past year.
• 27 million litres of Indonesian palm oil were pumped into our tanks this year, of which not a single drop met the Government's own environmental standard (the RTFO meta standard). This is a scandal, because palm oil is one of the main causes of rainforest destruction and its production is actually speeding up climate change. A tenth of all the biofuel we used was palm oil
• Several companies (Chevron, Murco, and Topaz) have not reported any biofuels meeting the qualifying environmental standard, and Esso have reported less than 2% of their biofuels meeting a qualifying environmental standard.
• Less than a quarter of the biofuel (24%) we're using has met the Government's own sustainability standard.
  

UK at forefront of a low carbon economic revolution

A comprehensive plan to move the UK onto a permanent low carbon footing and to maximise economic opportunities, growth and jobs was published by the Government today.

The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan plots out how the UK will meet the cut in emissions set out in the budget of 34% on 1990 levels by 2020. A 21% reduction has already been delivered – equivalent to cutting emissions entirely from four cities the size of London.

Transforming the country into a cleaner, greener and more prosperous place to live is at the heart of our economic plans for Building Britain’s Future and ensuring the UK is ready to take advantage of the opportunities ahead. By 2020:

- More than 1.2 million people will be in green jobs

- 7 million homes will enjoy pay-as-you-save home energy makeovers, and more than 1.5 million households will be supported to produce their own clean energy

- 40% of electricity will be from low carbon sources, from renewables, nuclear and clean coal

- We will be importing half the amount of gas that we otherwise would.

- The average new car will emit 40% less carbon than now.

The Transition Plan takes a cost effective route to reducing carbon and keeps the overall impact on the consumer to a minimum. Today’s plan will not increase average energy bills by 2015, compared to now. By 2020, the impact of ALL climate change policies, both existing and new, will be to add, on average, an additional 8% - or £92 - to today’s household bills. Since 2000 £20 billion has been spent tackling fuel poverty, assisting millions of households in the UK. The Plan includes greater powers for the regulator Ofgem to protect the consumer and, following new legislation, new resources for discounts off the bills of some of the most vulnerable households.

The Transition Plan is the most systematic response to climate change of any major developed economy, and sets the standard for others in the run up to crucial global climate talks in Copenhagen in December.

The UK Low Carbon Industrial Strategy, published alongside, sets out a series of active government interventions to support industries critical to tackling climate change. It puts workers and businesses in the UK at the forefront of massive global opportunity by targeting key industries and regions where the UK has competitive or commercial advantage, including offshore wind, marine power and carbon capture and storage. This includes the first allocations from the £405m funding for green industry and technology announced in the Budget.

Also published today are the Renewable Energy Strategy which maps out how we will deliver the UK’s target of getting 15% of all energy (electricity, heat and transport) from renewables by 2020, and the Government’s Low Carbon Transport Plan which sets out how to reduce carbon emissions from domestic transport by up to 14% over the next decade.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“The UK was the first country in the world to legislate for carbon budgets. It was a dramatic change in approach. This is a transition plan for Britain, a route-map to 2020, with carbon savings expected across every sector and a carbon budget assigned to every government department alongside its financial budget.

“Renewables, nuclear and clean fossil fuels are the trinity of low carbon and the future of energy in Britain. Under our plans we will get 40% of our electricity from low carbon energy by 2020 and more in the years afterwards.

“Our plan will strengthen our energy security, it seeks to be fair to the most vulnerable, it seizes industrial opportunity and it rises to the moral challenge of climate change.

“In five months, the world must come together at Copenhagen and follow through on the commitment of world leaders last week to stop dangerous climate change. Today we have shown how Britain will play its part.”

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said:

“The strategies we are launching today outline the government’s vision for achieving a low carbon future for the UK, reshaping the way we live and work in every element of our lives. This is a challenge that every economy is facing, and we are determined that by setting clear policy now Britain positions itself to benefit both economically and environmentally from the transition.

“The UK is already the sixth largest economy for low carbon goods and services, globally worth £3 trillion and growing, and today the government is outlining how its support for the economy will ensure our businesses and our workforce continue to lead the way. We must combine the dynamism of the private sector with a strategic role for government to deliver the benefits of innovation, growth and job creation in the UK.”

Transport Secretary Andrew Adonis said:

"Transport accounts for a significant amount of our domestic emissions. Therefore decarbonising this sector has to be front and centre of efforts to meet our obligations and commitments to tackle climate change. Our strategy sets out a long-term vision for a fundamentally different transport system in our country, where carbon reduction is a central consideration in the way we do business.

"If we are to safeguard the future of transport then we must also safeguard the environment that it impacts upon – I am determined to do that."

The UK is the first country in the world to set itself legally binding ‘carbon budgets’. Under the Climate Change Act 2008 emissions of greenhouse gases are constrained in each successive five year period. The Transition Plan sets out how we will cut emissions by 34% on 1990 levels by 2020 from the main emitting sectors – power, homes, workplaces, transport and agriculture – on the way to achieving a reduction of at least 80% by 2050. Every government department has today been allocated its own carbon budget, as the Government pilots a new system to run alongside financial budgets.

Departments will have to live within these when taking major policy decisions and managing their buildings. Failure could have real financial implications for Government.

An outline of announcements contained in the documents published today:

THE POWER SECTOR

Around 50% of the annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved by further greening of the electricity mix. We expect 40% of the electricity we use in 2020 to come from low carbon sources – 30% from renewables, the rest from nuclear (including new build) and clean coal. We need to all-but eliminate carbon from electricity by 2050.

New today:

- Up to £6m to start development of a ‘smart grid’, including a policy road map next spring.

- DECC to take direct responsibility from Ofgem for establishing a new grid access regime within 12 months.

- Launch of the new Office for Renewable Energy Deployment in DECC to speed up the growth of renewables in the UK.

- £11.2m to help regions and local authorities prepare for and speed up planning decisions on renewable and low carbon energy whilst protecting legitimate environmental and local concerns.

- The final shortlist of the schemes for the Severn Tidal Power feasibility study is confirmed as three barrages (including the Cardiff-Weston barrage) and two lagoons. Three innovative schemes have also won funding to support their development.

- A consultation covering the changes to the existing Renewables Obligation, such as extending the life-time of the RO to at least 2037 and the introduction of a 20 year limit on support, to make it capable of delivering some 30% of our electricity from renewables.

- Approval for the UK’s largest biomass power station on Teesside

HOMES AND COMMUNITIES

Around 15% of the annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved making our homes more efficient and supporting small scale renewable energy. There are massive cash savings to be made - in a poorly insulated home, up to £1 out of every £3 spent on heating is being wasted.

New today:

- We aim to place the energy suppliers’ social programmes on a statutory footing with increased resources when the current voluntary agreement ends in March 2011.

- Strengthening the energy regulator Ofgem’s powers to protect the consumer.

- ‘Pay as you save’ pilots helping people make their whole house greener by using the savings made on energy bills to repay the upfront costs, backed by up to £4m from low carbon investment funding. An eventual national roll out could create 34,000 jobs.

- Consultation on the shape and rates of a new ‘clean energy cash-back’ scheme (Feed in Tariff) to be in place by April next year. People and businesses that generate their own electricity from low carbon sources will be paid for doing so. A similar scheme for renewable heat will follow in April 2011.

- Extending the current CERT energy efficiency programme by a year to 2012. Alongside an uplift of 20%, total help under the scheme will total £3.2 billion.

- A new personal carbon incentive scheme to challenge people on a voluntary basis to save energy, through the Government’s Act on CO2 campaign.

- Challenging 15 villages, towns or cities to be testbeds for piloting future green initiatives.

WORKPLACES AND JOBS

Around 10% of the annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved through greater efficiencies in our workplaces. By 2050, our offices, factories, schools and hospitals need to reduce emissions to almost zero. Jobs and business opportunities will be created in new sectors outside the energy sector and help will be needed to support all businesses be more energy efficient.

New today:

- Up to £120m from low carbon investment funding to significantly advance the offshore wind industry in the UK.

- Up to £60m from low carbon investment funding announced in the Budget to cement the UK’s position as a global leader in wave and tidal energy including:

- Up to £9.5m investment in the Wave Hub sub-sea socket off Cornwall and up to a further £10m funding to make the South West the UK’s first Low Carbon Economic Area, a world centre for wave and tidal energy, building on business opportunities and skills.

- Up to £10m for testing facilities at the National Renewable Energy Centre in Northumberland and up to £8m for the European Marine Energy Centre in the Orkneys.

- Up to £22m for a new Marine Renewables Proving Fund for testing and demonstration of wave and tidal technologies.

- £6m of funding to explore areas of potential “hot rocks” to be used for geothermal energy. The deep geothermal resource of the South West of England alone could meet 2% of annual UK electricity demand.

- A £4 million expansion of the Manufacturing Advisory Service, to provide more specialist advice to manufacturers on competing for low carbon opportunities, including support for suppliers for the civil nuclear industry.

- A new Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre to combine the knowledge, practices and expertise of around 30 manufacturing companies with the capability of universities on manufacturing, processes and skills.

- Campaign to be launched later this year to help small and medium businesses in the shift to low carbon.

- The public sector must lead by example. Emissions have already reduced by a third between 1990 and 2007 and DECC has challenged itself to reduce emissions from its own building by 10% in 09/10 with more to follow.

TRANSPORT SYSTEM

Around 20% of the annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved by cleaning up the way we travel. By 2050, road and rail transport will be largely decarbonised and aviation and shipping will have seen a significant improvement in efficiency.
New today:

- Providing proposed detail on the kinds of electric and plug-in hybrid cars that could qualify for the £2-5000 consumer incentives expected to apply from 2011. This includes the requirement for the vehicle to have maximum tailpipe emissions of 75g CO2/km. An update has also been published on the infrastructure framework which is supporting this scheme.

- A new steering group for the freight and logistics industry to find effective ways of measuring, reporting and reducing emissions across the logistics sector

- Commitment to work with our European partners to develop a robust mechanism for regulating CO2 from new vans.

FARMS AND MANAGING LAND AND WASTE SUSTAINABLY

Around 5% of the annual emissions cuts between now and 2020 will be achieved by reducing emissions from agriculture, land use and waste.

New today:

- For the first time ever, an ambition for agriculture to cut emissions. Changes to farming practices can save farmers money and contribute 6% cuts from current projections by 2020.

- Support for anaerobic digestion, a technology that turns waste and manure into renewable energy.

- Support for energy efficient and low carbon farming. Within the limits imposed by the current EU rules on state aid, the Government and the Carbon Trust will work to make farming businesses eligible for its interest-free loans for low-carbon activity.

- Agreeing an action plan with the agriculture sector to reduce emissions and developing an advisory service to help farmers.

- Encouraging private funding for woodland creation.

- Reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill, and better capture of landfill emissions.

Kingsnorth stand-off ends

A dramatic stand-off at Kingsnorth power station in Kent has ended after four Greenpeace campaigners, who boarded a coal freighter bound for the power station last night, came down from the foremast after being served with an injunction.

Greenpeace volunteers intercepted the freighter using rigid inflatable speedboats just after midnight this morning. As the ship sped towards Kingsnorth the campaigners attached climbing ladders to the vessel and scaled the 15 metre hull.

Sarah Shoraka, speaking just before leaving the freighter, said: "We climbed onto this ship, and stayed onboard throughout the night and all day, because coal is the most climate-damaging fuel known to man. If we keep burning coal, we can't beat climate change.

"But Ed Miliband's new policies would still allow Eon to build the dirtiest new power station in Britain for thirty years."

Land next to the existing plant at Kingsnorth has been earmarked for the construction of the first new coal-fired power station in Britain for 30 years. The highly controversial plans have sparked a series of protests, but this is the first time a coal shipment to the site has been blocked and boarded. The Government claims a new Kingsnorth plant will be cleaner, but in reality under the new policy, announced in April, it would still pump three-quarters of its emissions into the atmosphere for years to come - six million tonnes of CO2 every year.

The Greenpeace members who were on board the ship say by stopping the coal cargo being burned they were protecting people and property around the world from the devastating effects of climate change.

UK decisions on coal have an international impact. This year's international meetings on climate change, designed to prepare the groundwork for the summit in Copenhagen this December, have been uniformly unproductive, and the success of the Copenhagen talks is now highly uncertain. Brown will need to do everything in his power to give the UK and EU negotiating positions political and scientific credibility, both with his policies and his presence, if there is to be a chance of a meaningful agreement.

The G8 meeting in Italy on the July 8^th provides a key opportunity to go into Copenhagen with some progress having been made. Greenpeace urges the Prime Minister to seize this opportunity to show some leadership and rescue his legacy.

Labour's approach to climate change

The UK Climate Projections 2009, released today, will help us plan and prepare for change to our climate in the UK.

By acting now, we can limit the severity of climate change in the future.

Labour’s approach to tackling climate change centres on protecting the public from immediate risk, preparing for the future, leading international efforts to get a global deal in Copenhagen in December, creating a low carbon UK and supporting individuals, communities and businesses to play their part.

Labour's Environment Secretary, Hilary Benn, said:

"There is no doubt about it – climate change is the biggest challenge facing the world today. Climate change is already happening – the hottest ten years on record globally have all been since 1990. This landmark scientific evidence shows not only that we need to tackle the causes of climate change but also that we must deal with the consequences.

"The Projections will allow us to make sure we have a resilient infrastructure to cope – whether it’s the design of school buildings or protection of new power plants, maintaining the supply of drinking water, adjusting ways of farming for drier summers or understanding how our homes and businesses will have to adapt."

CLEAN COAL TO SUPPORT UP TO 60,000 UK JOBS

Consultation details conditions for new UK coal power stations

Clean coal technology could bring between £2-4 billion a year into the UK economy by 2030, and support between 30,000-60,000 in jobs such as engineering, manufacturing and procurement, according to new independent research published today.

The report, ‘Future Value Of Coal Carbon Abatement Technologies To UK Industry’ by AEA Group, is published today alongside the Government’s consultation document ‘A framework for the development of clean coal’.

As outlined by Ed Miliband to Parliament on 23 April, the consultation details how the Government proposes to reconcile the need to curb emissions of carbon from future coal fired power stations with the need to maintain a secure diverse energy mix. It proposes:

• Requiring CCS demonstration: New coal fired power stations should only be given consent in the UK if they demonstrate CCS on at least 300MW net (around 400MW gross) of capacity from day one. Each demonstration project would have to store 20 million tonnes of CO2 over 10-15 years. The proposed framework recognises that CCS demonstration will only proceed with Government intervention. A financial incentive funded by electricity suppliers will support up to four commercial-scale CCS demonstrations in the UK. Alongside the Government’s ongoing competition to build a post-combustion demonstration, up to three further projects including pre-combustion technology could be supported. The primary legislation required to implement this mechanism will be sought at the earliest possible opportunity.
• Requiring CCS retrofit: All new coal fired power stations should be required to retrofit CCS to their full capacity within five years of CCS being proven. We are planning on the basis that this point will be reached by 2020, and an independent review, potentially led by the Environment Agency, would report in that year on the status of the technology. The consultation document also explores whether this requirement should apply to existing coal fired power stations.
• Contingency: In the event that CCS takes longer than expected to be judged proven, further measures may be needed to ensure emissions from coal are substantially reduced. These measures could include an annual cap on individual power stations’ emissions, a limit on running hours or an emissions performance standard that would limit the amount of CO2 that could be emitted per unit of electricity generated.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

“The conditions we’re proposing for new coal are the most environmentally ambitious of any country in the world, requiring the demonstration of CCS on a substantial proportion of any new power station and the 100% retrofit of CCS when it’s proven.

“At the same time, by providing funding for demonstrations, we can maintain coal as part of our energy mix, supporting diversity and therefore security of supply.

“By acting early, jobs will also be created as Britain develops the expertise in what could be a major new industry, with CCS projects offering the potential to form the hubs for clusters of low carbon industries.

“By driving the development of CCS in this country, we are also, as a country, playing an essential role in the battle against climate change.”

(DECC) UK Smart Meter roll out moves forward

* Hi tech meters will change our energy habits
* No more estimated bills or staying in for meter readings
* Easier switching between energy suppliers
* Suppliers will be able to offer cheaper off-peak energy

All homes in Britain will have smart meters installed by 2020 under plans published today. Great Britain will be the first country in the world to have an overhaul of this size for both electricity and gas meters.

Smart meters enable meter readings to be taken remotely and together with a display device give householders real time information on their energy use.

The new information smart meters provide will help consumers to see what energy they are using and how to save money on their bills.

Smart meters will mean the end of estimated bills, no more having to stay in for home readings, quicker and smoother switching between suppliers and cheaper, easier prepayment.

The Government has today set out the different options for rolling out the revolutionary kit across Great Britain and on what the smart meters should be capable of doing.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said:

"This is another part of our Great British refurb. The meters most of us have in our homes were designed for a different age, before climate change. Now we need to get smarter with our energy.

"Smart meters will empower all consumers to monitor their own energy use and make reductions in energy consumption and carbon emissions as a result. Smart meters will also mean the end of inaccurate bills and estimated meter readings.

"This is a big project affecting 26 million homes, and several million businesses, so it's important we design a system that brings best value to everyone involved."

Case study

Karen Gibson, a 33 year old Nursery Manager from Northumberland, is an npower customer who had a 'smart pre-payment meter' fitted in October 2007.

She said:

"This new smart meter has made life so much easier. I believe everyone should have one and the sooner the better.

"I reckon I have saved around £250 since I had it fitted a couple of years ago because I am not wasting as much energy as before. I know at any given moment how much energy I am using in pounds and pence and I pay for exactly what I use.

"An added bonus is that I don't need to pop out constantly to top up my key. And if the shop is shut I don't need to worry as I prefer to use the internet to top up my meter. If I have a problem with my computer I can simply use my mobile phone. All the fuss has now been taken away with having a pre-payment meter."

Smart meters signify the start of a change in our energy habits. They are a key step towards future smart grids which have the potential to help our shift to a low-carbon economy - making it easier for renewable generation to feed into the grid, including micro and community level generation and will support the decarbonisation of heat and transport through the greater use of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

Suppliers will be able to offer more tariffs and services, such as 'time-of-use' tariffs, encouraging more efficient and economical energy use.

The preferred roll-out option is the central communications model - where energy suppliers are responsible for the installation and maintenance of the smart meter but the communication to and from the device is coordinated by a third party across the whole of Great Britain.

The other principal models considered are:

* Competitive model - where energy suppliers manage all aspects of smart metering, including installation and communication.

* Fully centralised - where regional franchises are set up to manage the installation and operation of smart meters with the communications to and from the meters managed centrally and on a national level.