Letwin proposes retrofit of all homes by 2017

Oliver Letwin this afternoon announced radical new plans to retrofit the entire British housing stock. But the proposals, which appeared to preempt a speech by Greg Clark tomorrow, provoked questions over the cost and feasibility of the proposals.

Speaking at a Climate Clinic event at the fringe of Conservative Party conference, Mr Letwin, answering a question about the need to address emissions from existing properties said:

“We’re going to be making an announcement about this. The condition of the housing stock is such that an enormous quantity of improvements can be made … We think it is possible to mobilise the funds in an appropriate way to have, by 2017, a retrofit of the entire British housing stock.”

Questioner Henry Gregg – Public Affairs manager at National Housing Federation, speaking exclusively to Left Foot Forward afterwards – said:

“We would welcome any inititiatve designed to impove the energy efficiency of British homes as they represent 27% of all emissions and they will also help to tackle fuel poverty.

“There has always been a need to undergo a massive retrofit of domestic properties to achieve the statutory climate change targets. The issue is exactly how this will be paid for. I look forward to seeing what the Conservative party are proposing.”

Gregg said that currently only 1 per cent of privately built new homes reach Level 3 of the Code for Sustainable Homes (i.e. the level to which housing associations build). There are around 28 million homes in the UK.

Event Chair, Peter Madden said:

“The financing is potentially in place. The problem is consumer demand – whether tenants will let builders in their house – and whether we can get the skills up to speed.”

UPDATE: The cost of the scheme could rise to £162.5 billion if each of Britain’s 25 million households requiring retrofits took up the Conservative party’s promise of “granting an entitlement to households to approved home energy efficiency works up to a value of £6,500.”

The Conservative party say they would pay for the scheme, “through the existing energy companies or through local authorities, or to create a separate vehicle to authorise commission, supervise and finance the work carried out.” To achieve the goal by 2017 would mean retrofitting over 3.5 million homes and a cost of up to £23.2 billion per year.

The Labour government has committed to have all suitable lofts and cavity walls insulated by 2015 and 7 million homes (a quarter of the country’s housing stock) to have undergone a full eco-makeover by 2020.