Rural-proof

The CLA is focusing a lot of its policy and lobbying work on ensuring future energy e ciency policy proposals for buildings and homes work for members. Property and Business Adviser Hermione Warmington explains

n 2021 the UK government committed

Ito an ambitious carbon target for 2035, which will act as a stepping stone to the 2050 net zero target. This has placed great pressure on the decarbonisation of buildings, which currently account for nearly one-fi fth of all UK greenhouse gas emissions. To meet the 2050 target, emissions from buildings need to be almost eliminated – but with more than 90% of homes heated by oil and gas, this is a huge challenge. 2021 was an incredibly busy year as the CLA continued to lobby hard for Energy Performance Certifi cates (EPC) to be fi t for purpose and for regulation to be rural-proofed. Some brilliant case studies from members enabled us to get a foot in the door with UK government early on, and we continue to meet regularly with both the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the newly-named Department for Levelling

Up, Housing and Communities. The

CLA was one of only three organisations invited to a roundtable with the minister for energy to discuss and inform new energy e ciency policy proposals.

In October 2021, the long-awaited Heat and Buildings Strategy was published. This is primarily a roadmap for heat policy, focusing on how the UK can transition away from fossil fuel heating, which currently heats 90% of our homes, towards low-carbon heating. It also covers building e ciency, the potential future demand for cooling, and fuel poverty. BEIS also published two consultations, which propose to phase out the installation of oil boilers in large commercial buildings (those greater than 1,000sqm) from 2024, and homes and other commercial buildings from 2026, as well as adopting a ‘heat pump fi rst’ approach. p pp n-stop, 2022 r. The CLA’s ensure that se, accurately cy of older that is based cost, while afe, appropriate asures. In nue to ding for mes from , advice via magazine guidance notes, bl podcasts and we

d The year ahead

Although 2021 felt non-stop, 2022 is set to be even busier. The CLA’s priority for 2022 is to ensure that EPCs are fi t for purpose, accurately measuring the e ciency of older homes using a metric that is based on carbon rather than cost, while also recommending safe, appropriate and cost-eff ective measures. In addition, we will continue to push for su cient funding for transitioning rural homes from oil heating to low-carbon heating, as well as lobbying for a VAT reduction for repair and energy e ciency measures.

A transition away from fossil fuels and towards low-carbon technologies means we will be more reliant on electricity – not only for heating, but also for transport. Another priority for 2022 is, therefore, to ensure that the electricity grid in rural areas is fi t for purpose and future-proofed so that rural areas don’t fall behind urban areas due to a lack of infrastructure.

In addition to our lobbying, we continueto off er bespoke advice to individual members, as well as sharing advice via magazine articles, guidance notes, blogs, podcasts and webinars.

Visit the advice Visit the ad section of the CLA’s section of t website cla.org.uk website cla for a full list for a full lis of guidance notes guidance n about energy about ene performance and perform heating homes. heating