Category: Central Government

Brexit deal must be renegotiated or UK motor operations could close

Barry White

News has broken that Vauxhall and Fiat manufacturer Stellantis has urged the government to renegotiate rules in the Brexit trade deal that it says could now force it to shut some of its UK operations, putting thousands of jobs at risk. This comes just two years after the future of its electric car plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton were believed to be safe. However, it now says it can no longer meet rules in the Brexit trade deal signed by Boris Johnson that require 45% of parts by value to be sourced in the UK or EU by 2024. More at: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/may/17/vauxhall-maker-says-brexit-deal-must-be-renegotiated-or-it-could-shut-uk-plant

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Planning system changes needed to promote home energy efficiency

Dr. Suzy Nelson, University of Westminster.

To meet the UK Government’s targets to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases from our homes and to address the cost of living crisis there needs to be a major programme to upgrade the energy efficiency of our homes. This involves improvements both to the fabric of homes and to the systems for controlling their internal temperature and moisture levels.

Lack of funding and shortage of skills are major obstacles to the implementation of retrofit projects on the scale needed. Through my involvement in the Architects Climate Action Network, I became aware that obtaining planning permission was another issue holding back retrofit projects, so I decided to investigate the extent to which this was a problem.

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Retained EU Law Bill: Government places hundreds of UK green laws on the chopping board

Michael Holder                                                   Business Green 11 May 2023

Laws, regulations, treaties and decisions related to habitats, air quality, climate change, renewable energy, farming and fishing proposed for scrapheap under government plans

Hundreds of UK laws and regulations directly related to the environment, climate change, air pollution, farming, energy and fishing are set for the chop before the end of this year, according to a list unveiled by the government which is likely to cause significant concern among green businesses and environmental groups.

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Progress on energy efficiency too slow – action now to avoid climate breakdown

Barry White

We know the benefits by making homes more energy-efficient, warmer homes and lower energy bills to name but two. Yet the pace of upgrades has stalled in recent years, leaving almost two-thirds of UK homes in need of better insulation. That’s why the report by the UK Business Council for Sustainable Development that calculates that the pace of the new government insulation scheme, announced last week as part of a wide-ranging energy security strategy, would take almost 200 years to reach the homes in need of upgrading.  It’s an urgent wake up call to government to reverse its poor record on heating homes. The news comes eleven days before thousands will gather in London to take part in four days of action to protest over the UK government’s failure to act on the climate crisis.

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