Why does the Government and Opposition keep telling us the transition to renewable energy would be costly? - Yorkshire Post Letters

The Government tells us, and to a lesser extent the Labour opposition too, that the British people will not accept the alleged additional cost of moving from fossil fuels to a renewable economy. Yet neither of them has explained why there would be more cost.

The truth is that there would be significant cost benefits to UK households by moving to a sustainable renewable energy economy. But our current Government doesn’t really want to make the move because they and their supporters have significant financial self-interest tied up in the fossil fuel industry. As for Labour, they are constantly afraid of their own shadow and dare not suggest anything to upset the status quo. So, let us look at these so-called costs.

Significantly raising standards of insulation in new build houses has continuously been kicked down the road. The powerful building lobby has made sure of this, stating that it would increase the cost to buy a house. This might be so, although not by very much and such cost would be spread over 25 years of mortgage repayments. Compare this with the immediate saving from the reduction of energy costs – in the case of Passivhaus standards, reduced close to zero. The savings would far outstrip the additional mortgage cost.

It is generally acknowledged that heat pumps need to replace gas boilers as the main source of heating. The Government recognises this and provides support to households to fit. However, this support needs to be higher, particularly for low-income households who would otherwise struggle to foot the bill. A problem here is the cost of electricity which is inexplicably linked to the price of gas. Even if the electricity coming down your wires is from cheaper renewables, you will be charged the much higher gas related price (this partly explains the big profits being made by energy companies). This must change to make electricity prices match their genuine generation costs. If you throw in solar and storage (including neighbourhood solar schemes) into the mix, the potential household savings would be significant.

Last year the UK imported £117bn worth of energy, primarily gas and oil. Moving over to a sustainable renewable economy, including the measures mentioned above, would save enormous sums on imports and thereby help the country economically.

The Government would also be a beneficiary of such savings via various mechanisms (direct costs to public services for example). This in turn could help to fund the transition.

The Labour Party has said that it wishes to raise investment into transition to £28bn a year. This in itself is modest but yet the Labour Party is nervous about Conservative funding criticisms and may yet draw back from its promises. But what is the problem with borrowing to invest? That is what all successful economies have done. Regarding affordability, UK Government borrowing as a percent of GDP is much less than that of the US for example, and the US doesn’t seem to be concerned about challenges of imprudence. The UK Government could theoretically borrow £500bn and still not exceed the borrowing levels of the US.

Transition to a sustainable renewable economy is not just about saving the planet. It also makes perfect financial sense for the UK economy, for the UK Government and for households and families. It’s quite simply a no brainer.

Unfortunately, we are being told untruths by the gas and oil giants, the generators, the housebuilders and the many other powerful vested interests in the status quo – with the acquiescence of the political parties.