On 13^th June, the Leader of the Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer, launched the Labour Party Manifesto 2024. The manifesto was unveiled following an announcement by the Party Leader at a launch event in Manchester and outlines the Party’s pitch for election.

Energy Efficiency and Net Zero

Net Zero remains a crucial topic for all Parties ahead of the upcoming election. In June 2023, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) warned of “worryingly slow” progress, stating that the current policies within the UK won’t deliver net zero in time for 2050.

In September 2023, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced a “more pragmatic, proportionate, and realistic approach” to net zero. This included a significant U-turn on the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES), which required all rented properties to have an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C or above by 2028.

Labour Manifesto: “Make Britain A Clean Energy Superpower”

The Labour Manifesto reinforces the Party’s commitment to achieving the net zero target and introduces a new mission to “Make Britain a Clean Energy Superpower by 2030”. The document states, “the clean energy transition represents a huge opportunity to generate growth, tackle the cost-of-living crisis and make Britain energy independent once again.”

As part of Labour’s plan to make Britain a clean energy superpower, the Manifesto includes a section titled ‘Warm Homes Plan”. Within this section, the Labour Party promises to invest an extra £6.6 billion during the next parliament to upgrade an estimated 5 million homes. This amount is double the existing planned government investment.

The Warm Homes Plan will also offer grants and low interest loans to support investment in home improvements, such as insulation, solar panels and low carbon heating. In addition to this, the Party will work with the private sector, including banks and building societies, to provide further private finance to accelerate home upgrades and low carbon heating.

Finally, the Labour Manifesto aims to reintroduce Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) by 2030, to help save renters hundreds of pounds per year. The document states, “Nobody will be forced to rip out their boiler as a result of our plans”.

Housing and Buildings

Housebuilding targets, and the ability of the government to meet them, has come under scrutiny in recent years.

Labour Manifesto: “Get Britain Building Again”

Within the Labour Party’s ‘Five point plan for growth’, the Manifesto outlines a ‘Getting Britain Building Again’ action point. In this, the Labour Party promises to build 1.5 million new homes over the next parliament.

To achieve this, the Labour Party aims to:

• Update Planning Frameworks: Update the National Policy Planning Framework, including restoring mandatory housing targets.
• Take a Brownfield First Approach: Prioritise the development of previously used land and fast-tracking approval of urban brownfield sites.
• Take a strategic approach to the Greenbelt: Take a more tactical approach to greenbelt land designation and release to build more homes in the right places, prioritising lower quality ‘grey belt’ land and introducing ‘golden rules’ to ensure the developments benefit communities and nature.
• Build more New Towns: Build a new generation of new towns, forming part of a series of large-scale new communities across England.
• Reform Purchase Rules: Reform compulsory purchase compensation rules to improve land assembly, speed up site delivery, and deliver housing.
• Unlock ‘nutrient neutrality’ homes: Implement solutions to unlock the building of homes affected by nutrient neutrality, without weakening environmental protections.

In addition to this, the Labour Manifesto also places a focus on the quality of new homes. The document states, “we will take steps to ensure that we are building more high-quality homes and creating places that increase climate resilience”.

What Happens Next? (General Election Timeline)

• 17th June: Deadline for registering to vote. This deadline has now passed.
• 18th June: Deadline for postal vote applicants. This deadline has now passed.
• 26th June: Deadline for new applications to vote by proxy.
• 4th July: Election day/Polling day.

Elmhurst will continue to update members throughout the above timeline on any new and relevant information relating to the energy assessment and retrofit sector.

What About the Other Party Manifestos?

With the General Election campaigns picking up speed, last week saw all three main political parties – Conservatives, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats – launch their Manifestos.

Conservatives: https://manifesto.conservatives.com/

Liberal Democrats: https://www.libdems.org.uk/fileadmin/groups/2_Federal_Party/Documents/PolicyPapers/Manifesto_2024/For_a_Fair_Deal_-_Liberal_Democrat_Manifesto_2024.pdf