Plan for all UK homes to be near zero carbon emissions by 2050: existing energy efficiency scheme and consultation outlined

British households will be able to receive expert, targeted help to reduce their fuel bills and access low-carbon heat and power in their homes, under an ambitious long-term Heat and Energy Saving strategy, says the government.

The draft plan sets out the need to reduce household carbon emissions to almost zero, in order for the UK to achieve its ambitious target of an 80 per cent cut in emissions by 2050. By 2030, the aim is for whole-house improvements to be available to householders in every home, in every street.

Alongside the plans, a new consultation seeks views on proposals to make changes to the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target 2008-11 through an amendment to the Electricity and Gas (Carbon Emissions Reduction) Order 2008 (statutory instrument 2008/188). This gives effect to a key element of the Prime Minister’s £1 billion home energy saving programme announcement of 11 September 2008.

The 'green' makeovers to hundreds of thousands of homes a year will, said officials, include a package of measures to roll out insulation and low-carbon technology such as solar panels to seven million homes by 2020 would help homeowners who take up the scheme to cut their bills.

Concerns have been raised that the package, which includes a levy on fossil fuels, will see millions of families facing an increase in heating bills to pay for the expansion in green energy. Under the proposals, finance packages would be offered to householders to install energy efficiency measures and low-carbon heating technology - with repayments paid for by savings on energy bills.

There would also be guaranteed cash payments for homeowners who generate their own heat energy through technology such as solar panels, biomass boilers and ground source heat pumps, funded through a levy on fossil fuel energy supplies.

But there are concerns that these costs could be passed on to consumers in their bills.

A spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) said the measures would have a 'negligible impact on bills' and there would be 'benefits across the board'.

He said the levy, the Renewable Heating Incentive (RHI), intended for introduction in 2011, would not affect today's household bills.

He said: 'We have to consult on how it will work and, in fact, our proposals would have little impact on prices for many years, apart from cutting billing for those who take up the offer of help.

'If we are going to protect consumers from the rapid increases in energy prices, this is how it is going to happen, by improving energy efficiency and improving energy security.'

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said: 'We need to move from incremental steps forward on household energy efficiency to a comprehensive national plan - the Great British refurb.

'We know the scale of the challenge: wasted energy is costing families on average £300 a year, and more than a quarter of all our emissions are from our homes.

'Energy efficiency and low-carbon energy are the fairest routes to curbing emissions, saving money for families, improving our energy security and insulating us from volatile fossil fuel prices.'

The proposals, which will now be put out to consultation, aim to cut emissions from households to almost nothing by 2050, with CO2 reduced by a third on 2006 levels by 2020.

The Government said homeowners would receive home energy audits, and help with installing low-carbon technology, smart meters and insulation in roofs and walls.

Housing Minister Margaret Beckett said: 'We don't only need more housing, we need better quality housing as well.

'These proposals can ensure that a more sustainable lifestyle is available to everyone, not just a luxury for those with the money to invest in the latest green gadgets.'

Alongside the long-term 'Great British Refurb', which would see 400,000 homes helped to save energy and cut carbon each year, programmes including the existing carbon emissions reductions target (Cert) will aim to improve energy efficiency in the short term.

But the announcement was criticised by the Tories, who accused the Government of a 'timid mix of reheated measures', and of taking ideas from Conservative policy to provide financial incentives for households to install energy efficiency.

Shadow energy and climate change secretary Greg Clark said: 'Labour should have used this opportunity to introduce a Green New Deal to cut fuel bills, breathe life into the construction sector and reduce carbon emissions.'

And he said the Government was dithering and delaying with a consultation rather than getting on and taking action which was desperately needed.

Liberal Democrat Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary, Simon Hughes said: 'This is all spin and no ambition and a clear sign that the Government has no grasp of the scale of the problem.

'Despite more than a decade of Labour announcements, less than one percent of all homes in the UK meet the Government’s own energy efficiency standard, leaving millions of people paying far more than they should to heat their homes.

'Rather than drag this out over four decades, the Liberal Democrats want to make every home a warm home within 10 years.

'We need a massive energy efficiency drive to create thousands of jobs and make homes greener and cheaper to heat.”

Key proposals include:

* Finance packages to install energy efficiency measures and low-carbon heat and power sources would be offered to householders. Repayment from part of the savings on energy bills would be linked to the property, rather than residents.

* Combined with guaranteed cash payments by way of a Renewable Heat Incentive and a Feed-in Tariff for small scale electricity generation, the payback for homeowners who switch to low-carbon technologies and save energy would start from day one.

* Options for improving the delivery of energy efficiency advice and measures, including establishing a central coordinating body funded by energy companies and working to Government-set targets.

* Rolling out low-cost home energy audits, developing a qualification for energy advisers, and establishing an accreditation scheme for installers.