The government should collect granular energy data and make it available to local authorities so they can take a leading role in delivering a Net Zero economy, according to a new report from The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Energy Studies (PGES), and give local and regional organisations the tools to deliver decarbonisation in a way that suits the location.
The government estate could also offer important pathfinder projects and case studies to demonstrate low carbon options.
Industry groups also said the government should better define ‘ net zero’ and set out a science-based roadmap with clear milestones to achieve it, without ‘picking winners’ of specific technologies.
PGES took soundings from industry groups across the economy in an inquiry to mark its 40 years in existence with the aim of ‘informing the government of the energy issues of the day’ (full disclosure: I was a member of the team that managed the inquiry).
It also heard that current market rules were too inflexible to allow for the necessary fast development.
The most difficult areas to decarbonise were said to be heat and transport, and that was why the government should facilitate the option of a hydrogen economy.
The problems around heat reinforced the message that public education was required, to enable individuals to make low-carbon choices. Policy assessments should take account of societal effects in their cost-benefit analysis, both the negatives such as consumer disruption and positives such as better public heat from an improved building stock.
It was important to present these to consumers in putting forward policy proposals and also to present the counterfactual so consumers would understand the real choices being made.
Among other points in the report, fundamental and relatively low cost was reforming the planning and building regulations systems to align with Net Zero.
Investment in skills would be fundamental to the rollout – and also help raise the level of knowledge about the low-carbon transition.
Read the full report and access individual responses on the PGES website here.