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The Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party Parliamentary Group have agreed to work together over the next five years to build a green economic recovery from COVID, respond to the climate emergency and create 'a fairer country.' A shared draft policy programme, the Bute House Agreement, details collaboration on the climate emergency, economic recovery, child poverty, the natural environment,...

Registered social housing providers are able to apply for funding to help make homes warmer and more energy efficient as the first wave of Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund opens today. The Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund will upgrade a significant amount of social housing stock to an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C. Minister for Business, Energy and Corporate Responsibility, Lord Callanan,...

The 8th annual Carrier Bag Levy statistics for Northern Ireland show that 56.2 million carrier bags were dispensed by retailers under the levy in Northern Ireland between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021. According to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera), this was 30.2% lower than the previous year, with 24.3 million fewer bags dispensed. The proceeds...

Energy regulator Ofgem has launched an investigation into Community Energy Scheme UK’s sales and customer service practices. The investigation is in relation to sales practices, and solar panel installations, for social housing tenants in Stoke-on-Trent. The investigation will examine whether the company breached consumer protection rules, including potential breaches of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and the Consumer...

Thames Water has agreed to pay over £11 million to 13,800 non-household customers and water retailers for errors in its data which led to customers being billed the wrong amount, water regulator Ofwat has announced. In addition to the compensation package, Thames Water has proposed a series of undertakings which, among others, include strengthening its internal processes and controls relating...

Ofgem is issuing Symbio Energy with a provisional order, which compels it to pay around £450,000 in full for a government environmental scheme. The Feed In Tariff (FIT) scheme, which is administered by Ofgem, provides payments to owners of small-scale renewable energy generators, and is funded through compulsory levies on suppliers. The FIT levelisation process is the mechanism by which the...

The Environment Agency is seeking views on their proposed charging approach for water resources abstraction and impounding licensing. In the outline of the new consultation, the Environment Agency states that they want to reform their water resources charging scheme so it’s 'fairer, works better for business and the environment and is financially sustainable.' The new proposed charges, which have not changed...

The use of fossil fuels to heat newly-built social homes will end from October 1st as Welsh Government commits to renewable energies and cutting edge technologies in its new build standards. The ambition is for private developers to adopt the Welsh Development Quality Requirements 2021 - Creating Beautiful Homes and Places, by 2025. According to the Welsh Government, new homes will...

The UK’s first-ever Hydrogen Strategy, which sets the foundation for how the UK government will work with industry to meet its ambition for 5GW of low carbon hydrogen production capacity by 2030, has been launched today. With government analysis suggesting that 20-35% of the UK’s energy consumption by 2050 could be hydrogen-based, this new energy source could be critical to...

The government committed to consult on regulating third-party intermediaries (TPIs) in the Energy White Paper, with a view to ensuring the regulatory framework adequately covers the wider market. A new call for evidence represents the start of that consultation process. TPIs, which include a wide range of business models that typically sit between customers and the regulated entities in the energy...