By Nneka Nwogwugwu
The UK government has proposed that it will spend more than £1bn helping schools, hospitals and industry to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The fund will also encourage the growth of new low-carbon technologies in the UK, under plans set out on Wednesday.
Kwasi Kwarteng, secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy said on Wednesday that,“We were the first major economy to put into law our target to end our contribution to climate change, and today we’re taking steps to be the first major economy to have its own low-carbon industrial sector.
“ Ahead of Cop26 [the UN climate summit to be hosted in Glasgow this November], the UK is showing the world how we can cut emissions, create jobs and unleash private investment and economic growth.”
The launch of the industrial decarbonisation strategy comes as the UK prepares to host vital UN climate talks, called Cop26, postponed from last November owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the day after the government’s integrated review of defence and foreign policy placed the climate crisis as the UK’s “foremost international priority”.
The government has allocated £171m to an industrial decarbonisation fund, to be split among projects including hydrogen gas and carbon capture and storage technology at sites in Merseyside, Teesside, Humber and Wales, and offshore engineering works in Scotland.
The government said the strategy would create about 80,000 jobs over the next 30 years, with the aim of cutting emissions from industry by two-thirds in the next 15 years.
Separately, about £932m will be spent on 429 projects upgrading public buildings, including schools and hospitals, with heat pumps, solar panels and insulation.
Areas to benefit include Manchester, where 36 schools and 22 leisure centres will be upgraded, as well as the transport authority, police and fire service, for about £78m; Leicester, where the city council will receive £24m for upgrading 93 buildings including 56 schools; and £24m for Hertfordshire county council to upgrade 183 council buildings, including 74 schools and 23 emergency service buildings.
The plans for public buildings stand in stark contrast to the government’s scheme for helping people upgrade their draughty homes, which make up 14% of the UK’s total emissions.
The green homes grant scheme, originally intended to be worth about £1.5bn, has had most of that funding withdrawn after a troubled start, including builders left unpaid and homeowners unable to get help.