CIBSE, as part of the Energy Efficiency Infrastructure Group (EEIG), has called on the UK Government to support a long-term, revenue-neutral Energy Saving Stamp Duty Incentive, to encourage homeowners to future-proof their homes against high energy bills.
The EEIG, a coalition of industry groups, businesses and charities has sent a letter to the Chancellor detailing a proposal for an Energy Saving Stamp Duty to incentive homeowners to insulate their homes and install energy efficient heating systems such as heat pumps.
The EEIG’s proposal, as part of its Better Buildings Investment Plan, can be revenue neutral and allows more public funding to be directed towards those who don’t have the means or access to finance.
Backed by a broad range of consumer, retail, builder and business groups, the tax incentive would encourage people to either purchase a more energy efficient home or to make it more energy efficient after purchase, by charging a lower level of stamp duty for doing so.
The letter states: “Our dependence on imported gas has been brought into stark relief whilst the emissions from 29 million homes across the UK have increased over the last six years, now accounting for 20% of UK carbon emissions. Whilst many other solutions involve government spending, this proposal is revenue neutral.
“Naturally, we welcomed the extra funding for heat pumps in the Spending Review for existing homes. However, these proposals will fail to take hold and reduce emissions sufficiently, if not accompanied by broader structural incentives for homeowners. Indeed, they carry a significant risk of adverse unintended consequences for homeowners, given that installation of heat pumps into homes that are not sufficiently energy efficient could lead to increased energy bills.
“New housebuilders would be encouraged to move to higher building standards in advance of being required to by regulations.
“Homeowners can be incentivised - nudged but not told - to improve their own homes to allow funding to be directed to those that don’t have means or access to finance. To realise this, the UK Government should provide an incentive for homeowners that goes beyond one-off, shorter-term grants for specific technologies. Whilst delivering low-cost measures, boom-bust grants have failed to produce a legacy of delivery capacity – vital for sustainable and efficient supply chains.
“UK Government urgently needs low-cost, long-term structural incentives to plug this significant tenure gap, which realistically can be announced in this Parliament. By giving a policy signal, or statement of intent now, with implementation in 18 months to two years, businesses have the time to work with government, smoothing the road to roll out and ramp up thus ensuring the skills, capacity and quality to deliver the requisite retrofit programme, in the knowledge there is market demand at the end.”
A copy of the letter in full is available here.
