Prime minster Rishi Sunak has scrapped the government’s home energy efficiency taskforce after six months.
The taskforce was set up to oversee initiatives to insulate homes and upgrade boilers to reduce the country’s energy use by 15% by 2030.
The move follows a series of U-turns made by Sunak last week.
Ministers were informed in a letter, as reported by the BBC, that the taskforce’s work was ending.
In the letter, energy efficiency minister Lord Callanan told the group its work would be “streamlined” into ongoing government activity
A spokesperson for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “We would like to thank the Energy Efficiency Taskforce for its work in supporting our ambition to reduce total UK energy demand by 15% from 2021 levels by 2030.
“We have invested £6.6 billion in energy efficiency upgrades this Parliament and will continue to support families in making their homes more efficient, helping them to cut bills while also achieving net zero in a pragmatic, proportionate and realistic way,” the spokesperson added.
Subscribe to Sustainability Beat for free
Sign up here to get the latest sustainability news sent straight to your inbox everyday
Greenpeace climate campaigner Georgia Whittaker stated it is a “deeply cynical decision” made by Sunak.
“The UK has the leakiest buildings in Western Europe and average household energy bills are double what they were in 2020.
“The government’s own fuel poverty strategy explicitly recognises that energy efficiency reduces fuel poverty, making Sunak’s decision to scrap the task force even more obscene,” added Whittaker.
“Sunak’s net zero flip flopping has seen his personal polling plummet to record lows,” she added.
“This decision will do nothing to reassure voters that this government is serious about the future of this country.”
