IPPR: Call for 'Tell Sid' campaign on making homes fit for net zero, backed by grants and loans
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Call for ‘Tell Sid’ campaign on making homes fit for net zero, as
report finds public are hungry for information Demand across
Britain for grants and investment to retrofit homes, with new
advertising drive to explain technology needed
A new ‘Tell Sid’ style campaign is needed to raise awareness of
home insulation and low-carbon heating needed to reach net zero,
and to advertise a bold new programme of cash help...Request free trial
A new ‘Tell Sid’ style campaign is needed to raise awareness of home insulation and low-carbon heating needed to reach net zero, and to advertise a bold new programme of cash help to households, a report by IPPR finds today. The campaign, intended to be as effective as the 1980s push for households to invest in privatised gas shares, would explain how to access public grants and zero-interest loans to lower the carbon emissions from heating the UK’s homes. Better insulation and new heating technologies would also lower energy bills and protect households from the rising price of gas.
According to YouGov
polling Correspondingly, two thirds of the public (65 per cent) support a new national information campaign to raise awareness of the technologies. A large majority support public grants of £7,500 (62 per cent) and zero-interest loans (61 per cent) with government helping to pay up to half of the loan, provided any additional costs of installing insulation and heat pumps are similar to, or less than, the cost of a gas boiler. A further 66 per cent back full grants for low-income households struggling to keep their homes warm. The report also notes how rapidly the UK needs to scale up its deployment of insulation and heat pumps to keep pace with its net zero targets. It says the UK is trailing far behind France, Germany and Italy in its installation of heat pumps. Last year, the UK only installed 6 per cent of the new heat pumps and less than 2 per cent of new solid wall insulation needed each year by 2028. As the government prepares to unveil its long-delayed plans for decarbonising the UK’s homes, expected next week, these findings and recommendations form part of a comprehensive retrofit action plan set out in the new IPPR report. The research sets out core pillars for the plan with key recommendations that include:
In the light of the current gas price crisis, IPPR calls for the government to pause its plan to shift environmental costs from electricity to gas bills. Instead of raising gas bills further, it says the costs should be recovered through general taxation, which would lower electricity bills in a fairer way. The UK Energy Research Centre estimates this reform could result in an overall saving for 70 per cent of homes as environmental costs would be levied more fairly through income, while the wealthiest households would face net increases of just 0.35 per cent of household income per year. In addition, IPPR recommends introducing a new carbon tax from 2030 to encourage the shift from gas boilers, so long as upfront costs of low-carbon heating alternatives are no more expensive than a new boiler. Joshua Emden, IPPR research fellow and lead author of the report, said:
“Decarbonising our heating will be disruptive. “Whether it’s the move from town gas to natural gas in the 1960s and 70s or the ‘Tell Sid’ campaign advertising British Gas shares in the 1980s, we’ve done this kind of large-scale programme before. Now we need a new national campaign to bring us into the next era for home heating.” Lesley Rankin, IPPR researcher and co-author of the report, said: “While UK policy falters, policies in other European countries are having a more positive impact. France, Germany and Italy’s ambitious policies to support households – a mix of grants, tax credits and loans with repayment subsidies – have led them to become the three largest heat pump markets in Europe in 2020. “In contrast, over the same year, the UK installed just over a quarter of the number of heat pumps in Germany, a sixth of the number in Italy, and a tenth of the number in France.” Luke Murphy, IPPR associate director and head of its Environmental Justice Commission, said: “With gas prices and energy bills spiralling, some of the leakiest homes in Europe and the climate crisis looming ever larger, we desperately need a national mission to upgrade the UK’s homes.
“What’s more, the “Now, as well as a new ‘Tell Sid’ campaign, Boris Johnson must urgently ‘Tell Rishi’ to stump up the cash so that the UK can get on with the job of delivering net zero, while making the nation’s homes warmer and more affordable.” ENDS NOTES TO EDITORS
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