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SCOTLAND TO SET HIGHEST STANDARDS FOR CLIMATE-FRIENDLY BUILDINGS IN EUROPE - WEDNESDAY 12 DECEMBER

Commenting on the publication of the Scottish Government’s expert panel report on low carbon buildings today (Wednesday 12 December), which sets out a road map to zero carbon new buildings in 2016/17, Stuart Hay, Head of Policy at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said,

“We warmly welcome this ambitious but realistic report, which puts Scotland on course to achieve warm, dry, climate-friendly new homes within a decade. Scotland is currently 30 years behind Swedish standards of home energy efficiency, but if Ministers follow the report’s recommendations, we should match those standards within three years, and exceed them in six. It’s now vital that Ministers deliver the recommendations in this report in full and on time, so we have a realistic chance of meeting climate change targets.”

Chas Booth, Parliamentary Officer for the Association for the Conservation of Energy, said,

“We particularly welcome the report’s endorsement of planning rules which require small-scale renewables until much tougher building regulations come into force in 2013. As last month’s report from the Renewables Advisory Board made clear, this interim support for the micropower industry is absolutely vital if we’re to achieve the target of zero-carbon buildings by 2016.”

Booth continued, “Our only concern with this report is the focus is almost entirely on new buildings. With new build accounting for only 1% of the building stock each year, it’s essential that serious investment in the existing stock is also pursued given Scotland’s growing fuel poverty problem. We urge the Scottish Government to look to Germany, where €2.6bn is being ploughed into energy efficiency improvements for existing homes.”

Download the full report.

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