Welsh Government announces new clean energy plans and the AA calls for VAT on Electric Vehicles to be scrapped

Last year Wales along with the wider UK declared a ‘climate emergency’ and it seems is determined to take some action to tackle the issues of climate change. According to the government, 9% of all greenhouse gas emissions coming from new and older homes.

Under the new proposals newly built houses after 2025 will be more energy efficient, produce far less CO2 emissions and be cheaper to run. The government also said that Welsh residents could also save up to £180 per year on their bulls under the new proposals.

“To meet our target of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 95% by 2050, we need to take action now to make a significant step change to the way we heat and power our homes. The new homes being built today will exist in 2050. Therefore, we must ensure the standards we set for these homes put us on the right path. These measures will not only tackle climate change, but keep down household energy costs, helping people with the cost of living,” said Housing Minister Julie James.

The Proposals include:

• Improved energy efficiency from 2020 to cut carbon dioxide emissions from new dwellings by 37%
• Phasing out the use of high-carbon fossil fuels
• Improving energy efficiency by limiting heat loss and reducing the demand for heat
• Improving air quality

The proposals also say that due substantial change is needed for it to hit its climate targets and all new homes could come with installed solar panels, triple glazing and will share heating and hot water from a central source.

It said when the "tough new standards" are implemented, homes should produce 75-80 per cent less CO2 emissions than those built to current requirements.

Consultations on the proposals are due to end in March.

In an interview with Energy Live News the Head of Roads Policy at the AA, Jack Cousens called for the government to scrap VAT on electric vehicles to help speed up the uptake of the cleaner vehicles by consumers.

He said that the biggest hurdles to EV uptake are the high initial purchasing costs and consumer concerns that vehicle charging points are not easily accessible. He suggested that scrapping VAT on EVs would invigorate the market and get more drivers to switch their petrol and diesel cars for electric alternatives.

“The Prime Minister frequently uses the phrase level up. Now he’s got the opportunity to level up the types of vehicles we have on our road by cutting VAT from the sale of electric cars and really invigorate the electric car market and that’s what we’d like him to do.” Cousens said.

According to research by the AA the scrapping of VAT would encourage more low-income families to make the switch.

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