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The government has launched a new energy efficiency taskforce that will look at how the UK can cut energy usage and lower household bills in the short term.
The taskforce will create a plan on how the UK can reduce total energy demand from buildings and industry by 15 per cent by 2030 when compared to 2021 levels.
According to the Odyssee-Mure Project, which monitors efficiency trends in Europe, energy efficiency for UK consumers improved by around 30 per cent between 2000 and 2018 – around 1.6 per cent per year.
NatWest chief executive Dame Alison Rose will be the co-chair of the new body just weeks after her bank said it would reduce lending to oil and gas firms as part of a new climate change initiative.
“Addressing the climate crisis is a team sport and building vital partnerships between the public and private sector is the key to tackling this challenge at pace,” she said.
“Improving energy efficiency will not only drive a lower carbon environment, but also deliver greater economic security through lower bills for people, families, and businesses right across the UK.”
Lord Callanan will also be a co-chair of the taskforce from within the government: he was appointed under-secretary of state at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero earlier this month.
Last year, Callanan admitted that the huge support payments the government is providing to help households keep on top of their energy bills could have been spent more efficiently if it had not previously cut insulation budgets.
The creation of the new taskforce was first announced as a future goal in the Autumn Statement by chancellor Jeremy Hunt.
“Our green industry is a key growth sector set to be worth £1tr by the end of the decade,” Hunt said. “It will bring high-paid jobs, brand-new manufacturers and huge export opportunities, but needs extra attention now to make sure British companies and our people can fully share in the sector’s success and grow the economy.”
Hunt is due to attend a summit today with CEOs, founders and leaders from green companies in the UK.
The Treasury said that £6bn of government funding would be available from 2025 to support the plan to cut energy demand.
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