Blog entries from Darren Shirley

Kevin McCloud has chosen his winner, but which one is yours?

Darren Shirley — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:04:54 +0100

The judges have met, the awards have taken place, now we can make it public: Henry Steedman, with his film ‘Janet’, has been announced as the winner of the Great British Refurb film competition by Kevin McCloud and the judging panel.

Henry’s film is about a woman who is ‘doing her bit to save the planet’. He has won a fantastic prize of a WWF-UK film commission for the ‘What Wood You Choose’ campaign with a £5,000 budget, as well as further bonuses of cash and camera equipmentRead More...

Energy Bill is still inadequate

Darren Shirley — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 09:55:49 +0100

The Energy Bill has finished its passage through the House of Commons today. It is still inadequate. The Bill, which now goes back to the Lords, will not ensure that the Green Deal, the Government’s flagship energy efficiency policy, is taken up.

At present, the Bill will fail to deliver emission reductions under the Green Deal unless further incentives are put in place. Improving energy efficiency is a win-win for everyone in terms of lower home fuel bills and carbon emisRead More...

Energy Bill delayed – time to deal with Green Deal failings

Darren Shirley — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:41:14 +0100

The Energy Bill has been delayed. Ministers will now have the opportunity to correct the inadequacies with the Green Deal that will cause the UK to fail to meet its emissions targets under the Climate Change Act.

On the 30th June the Committee on Climate Change published its third progress report on meeting the carbon reduction targets. Further analysis on the Governments Green Deal carried out by WWF has shown that the UK will fall short in meeting the legally binding carbon budgetRead More...

Energy Bill Diary: Growing pressure on MPs to improve Energy Bill

Darren Shirley — Wed, 04 May 2011 13:55:56 +0100

The Second Reading of the Energy Bill in the House of Commons was announced last week. MPs will begin debating the Bill on 10th of May.

The legislation could, if improved, help facilitate the UK’s transition to a low carbon economy while providing a boost to the economy, new jobs, improved energy security and reducing fuel poverty. At the core of the Bill is a new energy efficiency programme. However, what the Government has introduced in the Bill is inadequate to ensure the UK Read More...

Energy Bill Diary: Out of the Lords and into the Commons

Darren Shirley — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:11:03 +0100

With the Third Reading of the Energy Bill complete in the Lords the Energy Bill has passed to the Commons.

The Lords went some way in improving the Energy Bill, but it is still lacking a defined aim and purpose for the energy efficiency programme. We heard much about the energy efficiency programme, the Green Deal, being a market led programme that should not be aiming to achieve a defined reduction in carbon emissions. We heard arguments that the Government defining the objective wRead More...

Will this be a budget for green growth?

Darren Shirley — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 08:21:52 +0100

The Budget is now settled, and the Chancellor is polishing the statement he will give to the Commons today (23 March) at 12.30pm. It's been touted as a Budget for growth. Will it be a Budget for green growth?

There's been much speculation on the content of the Budget over the last month and this Sunday's papers covered most of what is expected from the Chancellor. Last week David Cameron restated his commitment to be "the greenest government ever" in a message of support to our cRead More...

The Green Deal in a Green Growth Budget?

Darren Shirley — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 10:14:59 +0100

It’s that time of year again. Speculation builds on what is going to happen to our taxes, what will happen to fuel duty and then on Budget Day the Government claims the Budget will help the environment.

This year, I’m hoping things will be different. There have been murmurings of change within Treasury. There have been a series of meetings held in Treasury in the last month or two looking at the reform of the taxation system to introduce a means of promoting green Read More...

Energy Bill diary: part 2

Darren Shirley — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 15:45:51 +0100

The Second Reading of the Energy Bill is taking place today in the House of Lords from about 11.40am.

The Second Reading is the first opportunity Parliamentarians will have to debate the principles of the Bill, and how it can help the UK achieve its carbon targets through energy eRead More...

Digesting the Energy Bill

Darren Shirley — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 13:11:57 +0100

Last week we printed out what felt like an entire forest’s worth of paper, as the Government published the Energy Bill. The Bill came with a vast array of supporting documents. 33 documents! They weren’t short either. Never fear though, we use Evolve 100% recycled paper so no forests were harmed!

After reading for hours, much head scratching aRead More...

Cash boost for home improvements?

Darren Shirley — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 12:50:21 +0100

Success for the Great British Refurb! For the last year we have been calling for the Government to introduce financial incentives such as Stamp Duty or Council Tax rebates for people who improve their home energy efficiency.

This is vital to give the home eco-refurb market a kick start. Yesterday, we received some exciting news via the British media. The Times, Telegraph, and Daily Mail (twice in one day for them!) all wrote about the potential reforms to Stamp Duty being investRead More...