Only a fifth of the public believe that support for renewable energy should be funded primarily through electricity or gas bills, according to a survey carried out for the GMB union.
The findings of the Survation poll, which have been publicised to tie in with the union’s response to today’s (10 July) Committee on Climate Change (CCC) annual progress report, show that 78 per cent of the public believe the government should fund the development of the renewables industry.
The survey also found that the majority of people (51 per cent) believe this money should mainly come from income tax. GMB said loading the costs of decarbonisation onto energy bills “disproportionately hits” those least able to pay.
Justin Bowden, national secretary for energy at the GMB union, said: “GMB has always said any ‘green revolution’ must be paid from general taxation – including corporation tax – rather than the utterly regressive method now of green subsidies on household energy bills which hit those least able to pay the hardest.
“It is not that UK citizens won’t pay for the costs of decarbonisation. It is that millions simply cannot afford it. Recent comments from the likes of Caroline Lucas MP that costs per head in excess of £1,500 per head per year ‘are a price worth paying’ utterly misses the point and shows how out of touch they are with millions of ordinary people who don’t have that kind of cash.”
Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee chair Rachel Reeves said the CCC’s report, which states that the government is off track to meet its existing fourth and fifth carbon budgets for 2022 to 2032, illustrates the gap between the government rhetoric and action on cutting emissions.
“The government’s recent commitment to reducing the UK’s carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 was welcome but targets are meaningless if not matched by concrete action. This latest CCC report shows the government has failed dismally to back up its rhetoric with ambitious policies which deliver the cuts in emissions the UK needs to achieve.
“Getting to net zero will require action across all parts of government and our economy. Yet, in areas such as electric vehicles, carbon capture and storage, and renewable energy, we have seen the government has been too lacking in the ambition and political will to deliver the concrete policies necessary to make an impact.
“The costs of inaction, for our economy, for our environment, and for our health, are too great for the UK government to lag behind. The government needs to get the UK back on track and come forward with the policies, actions and regulations needed to achieve the more ambitious target of net zero emissions by 2050.”
Rebecca Long Bailey, Labour’s shadow business and energy secretary, said that efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions are lagging far behind what is needed.
“This is a remarkable, damning assessment of the government’s failure to tackle and prepare for climate change by their own advisors,” she said, highlighting the CCC’s conclusion that over the past year the government has only delivered on one of the 25 actions the climate watchdog says are necessary to meet the fourth and fifth carbon budgets.
“With the government delivering on just one out of 25 policy areas, this is proof, if more were needed, that the government has no plan to tackle the climate emergency declared by parliament.
“Labour takes the climate crisis seriously and will kickstart a green industrial revolution to safeguard our future and transform our economy.”
Tim Rotheray, chief executive of the Association for Decentralised Energy said: “The CCC highlights something the whole energy sector has seen. Legislating for net zero is an excellent move – but it alone is not enough. It is time now for government to get on and make it happen.
“Across the energy industry there is a growing sense of frustration at the lack of decision making from politicians to keep emissions falling. For immediate action we need focus on growing the role of existing sectors such as local energy and energy efficiency, which are already delivering lower costs and increased comfort and productivity for thousands of business customers and home owners.
“If government puts customer-led energy at the heart of its policy making and works alongside business we can put power back into the hands of customers and meet our net zero in a fair way.”
Renewable UK’s deputy chief executive Emma Pinchbeck said: “Just last month the UK set a world-leading climate target but there is now a void between our ambition and policies to actually meet it. Progress is slowing down due to government inaction. Deciding you want to win Wimbledon is great – but at some point you have to pick up the racket.
“The CCC advises that we should be supporting even more proven technologies like renewables, energy efficiency and EVs. Government should remove their barriers to cheap onshore wind and invest in innovation: floating wind, marine renewables and energy storage are vital to global decarbonisation.
“Our offshore wind success shows that investing in green technologies in the UK pays dividends – not just for carbon reduction, but for British industry – the CCC says we should be repeating that success in other technologies, because the clock is ticking on climate change.”