Local Government Association calls for solar panels on all new builds to meet green targets
A new report from the Local Government Association (LGA) says that all new build homes should be fitted with solar panels, and that this requirement should be part of the Future Homes and Building Standard.
Photo by Bill Mead / Unsplash
Solar panels are already a common feature on many new homes and the rate has increased over recent years. However, the LGA says that the rate of increase is not nearly quick enough and reports that 60% of new homes are still built without them.
The LGA notes that solar panels offer benefits to the people buying these new homes. According to the Resolution Foundation report ‘Sunny day savings: assessing government support for solar panels’, solar panels can cut household energy bills by 25%, saving the average household some £440 per year.
Installation would also help wider efforts to cut carbon emissions and tackle climate change.
Indeed, this recommendation is just one of a range policy and funding interventions set out in the LGA report which also include an increase in retrofitting, as well as finance and legislative changes
The report says that local councils are key to the delivery of clean energy and reduced emissions, as well as in supporting households to transition to net zero. However, councils also lack the needed funding and policies from central government.
With the imminent spending review in mind, the report sets out four national priorities for climate action that should be government pledges – decarbonising housing, reforming the energy system, expanding clean power, and protecting nature – as well as explaining how councils can help to realise these goals.
Cllr Adam Hug, Environment Spokesperson for the LGA, says: ‘This report sets out what councils can achieve and how to do it, if the Government is able to back them with the powers and funding to turn this into a reality.
Councils are ready to go further and faster on climate action – but we need a plan that works in partnership with local government. However, the funding or policies needed to empower them to help fully realise this ambition are not yet in place.
‘The government should use the spending review to ensure that councils are sufficiently funded and take on the policy recommendations that will help local government fulfil its role in tackling climate change.’
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