UK MPs Call for Urgency

A bi-partisan group of UK MP's are calling for a wartime style energy efficiency effort, according to this article in the Guardian. The MP's activity is tied to a recent government study that recognizes EE as the fastest way to cut emissions. The report, which was commissioned in the summer in response to energy price increased related to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, also advocates accelerating new generation projects, from solar and wind to gas fields. 

The British government has already unveiled a £6bn energy efficiency plan, but the MP's say it needs to be rolled out faster:  “Those in fuel poverty cannot afford three winters of delay. It is a false economy to hold this money back at a time when households are struggling and the taxpayer is having to spend billions to subsidise energy bills.”

According to the Guardian article, energy efficiency has stagnated in the country since 2012:

"The number of UK energy efficiency installations, such as insulating lofts and cavity walls, peaked in 2012 at 2.3m. Subsequently, the then prime minister, David Cameron, slashed efficiency programmes amid claims he wanted to get rid of the “green crap” from energy bills. By 2021, annual installations were 96% lower, at fewer than 100,000. The EAC called for at least 1m installations a year by 2025 and a target of 2.5m by 2030."

Overall, Europe has faired much better this winter than expected thanks to a combination of successful consumption cutting measure, new gas imports and renewables, and mild weather. This week, energy prices on the continent reached pre-war levels. That being said, energy prices were still historically high before the war.