All new homes would be 'zero carbon' within three years of a Corbyn government
1 November 2019, 23:23
The Labour Party will make all new homes "zero carbon" by 2022 under plans to tackle the housing and climate crises together, Jeremy Corbyn is set to announce.
A Labour government will introduce rigorous "zero carbon standards" within three years to ensure new houses do not pollute the atmosphere.
The plans could involve fitting solar panels, triple-glazed windows and super-efficient insulation on to all future developments, which could save people who live in new-builds around £200 a year in energy bills.
Heating systems that require fossil fuels to warm up houses, such as gas boilers, would be scrapped under the plans.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wants homes to be "safe and warm for families" and to build houses that do "not damage the environment for future generations."
"Our housing currently contributes a massive 14% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions. We will tackle the housing and climate crises at the same time by building warm and energy efficient homes," he will say in a speech on Saturday.
"At this election, the choice is clear - this is our last chance to take action to protect future generations or allow the Tories to accelerate our planet's destruction.
"The next Labour government will usher in a Green Industrial Revolution to tackle climate change and create hundreds of thousands of green jobs."
Tackling the climate emergency is at the centre of the "real change" Mr Corbyn promised when launching his party's electoral campaign on Thursday.
The last Labour government previously planned a zero carbon homes standard to come into effect by 2016, however David Cameron's Conservative government scrapped these plans a year before.
Labour's Shadow Housing Secretary, John Healey MP, stated that his party's "common-sense rules" would save people money and reduce pollution.
He said: "The Conservatives' decision to cave in to property developers and slash green standards means we are building homes today that aren't fit for the future - they're bad for the environment and expensive to run.
"After nearly 10 years of the Conservatives outsourcing housing policy to commercial house builders, we need a Labour government that will set common-sense rules which save households money and cut emissions."
The Tories were critical of Labour's proposals, saying their targets were "unrealistic, would slow down housebuilding and put up house prices."
"Boris Johnson and the Conservatives are taking a practical, sensible approach to reducing emissions from homes," said Robert Jenrick, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.
