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UK business and local leaders call for a Net Zero Development Bank

UK100, a coalition of local leaders and businesses, is calling on the UK government to pledge £5bn toward local energy projects in the upcoming stimulus package, which they say would net a return of £100bn to support the British economy, including £40bn for energy efficiency. The package could create over 300,000 jobs, helping to level up all parts of the country and ‘build back better’. The plans could also cut energy bills and save the NHS money, it claims.

The group is calling for the establishment of a Net Zero Development Bank which would bring together all government financing for the transition to net zero and kickstart local energy schemes which are at too early a stage to be attractive to private finance. The Bank would provide a single gateway to government support, replacing lost funding from the EU within a more stable regulatory regime.

The call for investment in energy efficiency reiterates the need for a national programme of home insulation, which was a £9.2bn Conservative manifesto pledge.

Launching the
UK100 Local Energy Insight Report, Polly Billington, Director of UK100 said: ‘The Prime Minister needs to make good on his manifesto promise to invest in energy efficiency in UK homes, which are some of the leakiest in Europe. £5bn could unlock £100bn. That would help consumers save on their fuel bills and the environment. A stimulus package that focuses on local energy will help rescue the UK economy and deliver on the Prime Minister’s ambitions of levelling up all parts of the country, and meeting the net zero target.’

Carl Ennis, the UK CEO of Siemens, notes: ‘There is an urgent need to scale up local, sustainable, energy if the UK is to have any chance of meeting net zero by 2050. This requires a collective national effort with government, business and the public all playing our part. Local energy should be at the heart of the National Infrastructure Strategy, creating a more consistent policy landscape that will give investors the confidence to invest earlier.’

News Item details


Journal title: Petroleum Review

Subjects: Banking, finance and investment, Climate change, Net zero

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