- Further legal action looms as government fails to require
private landlords to upgrade properties
The government has accepted that it will carry out a review into
its strategy for upgrading the homes of fuel poor households,
after ministers provided information which suggests they will
fail to meet a legal target to lift millions of struggling
households out of fuel poverty.
Last month, in response to an FOI request made by Greenpeace UK,
the government conceded that policies and schemes currently in
place to improve the energy efficiency of homes would only reduce
fuel poverty by 12% against 2020 levels by 2030 – despite a
deadline in UK law to significantly reduce fuel poverty by then.
The government’s inaction on fuel poverty was seen as potentially
unlawful by Greenpeace’s lawyers, prompting the threat of legal actionunless
the government carried out an immediate review into its strategy
for tackling fuel poverty.
In a letter responding to Greenpeace UK [1], the Government Legal
Department has stated that the Secretary of State has,
“decided to commence a process of reviewing and assessing the
implementing measures taken under the 2021 [Fuel Poverty]
Strategy, with a view to informing the development of a further
revised strategy.”
While the government has now promised to review the failing
strategy, and carry out a public consultation on any proposed
revisions, it has yet to confirm any dates for when the review
will be carried out, published or any further decisions made.
Greenpeace UK has reserved the right to commence legal
proceedings until the government provides concrete timeframes.
Greenpeace UK’s head of UK climate, Mel Evans,
said:
“Fuel poverty has reached epidemic levels in the UK but the
government just turned its back, leaving millions out in the
cold. It shouldn’t have required legal action to force the
government to provide people with a basic human need.
“Ministers now need to get on with the job. We urgently need to
see policies and cash to roll out a nationwide insulation and
green heating scheme at the same speed and scale of the Covid
vaccine programme.
“Done right, this has the potential to lift millions out of fuel
poverty and tackle the cost of living, energy and climate crises
at the same time as creating new jobs, easing inflation and
boosting the economy.”
Greenpeace UK is now considering whether to take further legal
action against the government for failing to require private
rental landlords to improve the energy performance rating of
their properties to a minimum of EPC B and C, to lift more
renters out of fuel poverty.
Any minimum energy efficiency standards announced for the private
rented sector must come with government funding, otherwise it’s
likely that rents will be increased and costs passed on to fuel
poor renters, already struggling with household bills.
