Scottish Government is falling behind on delivering warmer, greener homes
The Scottish Government is falling behind on energy efficiency and delivering warmer, greener homes to cut energy bills, says Scottish Green Co-Leader Patrick Harvie.
Mr Harvie was commenting ahead of a Scottish Government debate this afternoon on Supporting Households with Cost of Living Pressures and Rising Energy Bills.
Mr Harvie has called for Ministers to deliver the overdue Heat in Buildings Bill to tackle the climate crisis and reduce bills by reducing our exposure to volatile fossil fuel prices.
The Bill, which was under development by Mr Harvie in his time as a Minister, and was on track for introduction in November last year, will focus on improving the energy efficiency of our homes and changing to clean heating systems.
At present, around one fifth of all of Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions come from our buildings.
Mr Harvie said:
“With bills soaring, it is vital that we transform the way we heat our homes. That means making it easier and cheaper for people to do the right thing.
“Pointing out the many things Labour is doing badly is the easy part, we also need to take steps here in Scotland.
“By improving home insulation and hugely expanding the use of clean energy like heat pumps and heat networks, we can have warmer and greener homes that are cheaper to heat and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
“But it won’t happen by itself. It needs the Scottish Government to step up, act decisively and show the clear leadership that has been lacking.
“The delays have not been explained and no new timetable has been produced. I am concerned that despite talking a good game the Scottish Government is going to water it down at a time when it is needed the most."
Mr Harvie added:
“We don’t have time to waste. Scotland is already far behind a lot of other European countries on this. We only have to look to Scandinavia, where clean heat is a normal part of everyday life.
“We badly need to catch up. That means pulling out all the stops, living up the ambition that is required and giving Scottish households the benefit of affordable, reliable heat so that we can hit our climate targets and cut bills.”
