The Energy and Climate Change Committee plays a central role in scrutinising and improving the Government’s policy and legislation. This inquiry looked at the Committee’s work over the course of the 2010-2015 Parliament and also at future challenges and opportunities facing the next Government on energy and climate policy.
Objectives of the consultation
The Climate Change Act 2008 committed the UK to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80 percent by 2050. The 2010-2015 Parliament has been a defining period for energy and climate change policy. Three Energy Acts set the policy framework to help the UK achieve its goal. Each Act was designed to support new forms of energy generation, promote energy efficiency and protect consumers. These ambitious pieces of legislation have set the benchmark against which the progress towards providing a secure, clean and affordable energy supply will be judged.
The Energy and Climate Change Committee plays a central role in scrutinising and improving the Government’s policy and legislation. This inquiry looked back at the Committee’s work over the course of the Parliament. It also looked forward and asked what the energy system in 2030 might look like and what are the immediate challenges which need to be overcome in the next parliament.
CIBSE response
CIBSE believes that future UK energy provision requires a systems approach incorporating decarbonisation of supply made affordable by reduced energy demand. Reduced demand is often the cost effective and quicker solution, but is a challenge with multiple actors and stakeholders, limited business models and few industrial champions. There are significant gaps between departmental responsibilities, overlaps in existing policies, little attention to real measured energy consumption and limited compliance with existing measures such as the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations. Reducing demand is currently the poor relation of decarbonisation, but is essential to meet UK’s challenging targets.
To read the full CIBSE response, please follow the link below.
Results of the consultation and next steps
The Energy and Climate Change Committee launched its final report on 12 March 2015. The report provides a quantitative overview of the Committee’s work over the last five years and looks in more detail at three case studies – electricity market reform, competition in the energy market and shale gas – where it has played a key role in holding the Government to account and improving policy and legislation. The report goes on to set out the Committee’s future vision for the UK energy system, based on the views and evidence provided by a wide range of energy industry stakeholders. It also explores the challenges which will need to be overcome after the election if the UK is to achieve its ambitious long-term climate and energy goals.
To read the full ECCC report, please follow the link below.