Labour Conference 2024

Miliband pledges to lift one million renters out of fuel poverty


Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband speaks during the Labour Party Conference at the Liverpool Arena, September 23, 2024

MORNONG STAR
Monday, September 23, 2024

ED MILIBAND pledged to lift one million renters out of fuel poverty at the Labour Party conference yesterday.

The Energy Secretary said that “we all know that the poorest people in our country often live in cold, drafty homes,” calling it a “Tory legacy.”

He vowed to “end this injustice” and lift one million out of fuel poverty, boosting the minimum energy efficiency standard of all rented homes.

Currently, private homes can be rented out if they have energy performance certificate E, while social homes have no minimum standards.

Under the plans, both will need to meet a minimum rating of C by 2030.

While welcoming the news, Simon Francis from End Fuel Poverty Coalition warned that the government “shouldn’t drag its heels with more consultations.

“There is no time to waste as improvements will take months or years to be felt by tenants and the longer it takes, the more support households will need to stay warm in the winter.”

He called on the government to revoke cuts to the winter fuel payment and commit to more support for vulnerable households.

Mr Miliband also pledged to deliver “clean power” by 2030 through onshore wind, solar power, offshore wind, nuclear, tidal, hydrogen, and carbon capture.

Ahead of his speech, climate activists protested outside the conference demanding no new subsidies for the wood-burning Drax power station.

Katy Brown, from campaign group Biofuelwatch, said: “There’s no point in us saying, come 2030, we’re nearly at net zero on paper, but actually, the temperature has gone up by another degree because Drax is continuing to pump millions of tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

“They need to do their homework before putting investments down blind alleys, dangerous distractions, that are in some cases, going to make the climate crisis worse.”