Jeremy Corbyn has vowed to turn the Government’s “failed approach” to tackling climate change on its head with a “green industrial revolution” if he becomes prime minister.
The Labour leader said his party would create hundreds of thousands of “good green jobs” across the UK and save “millions of households” money on their energy bills.
Labour claimed the Government’s decision to cancel an insulation programme – the Warm Front Scheme – in 2013 has cost households a total of £3.7 billion on their bills.
And the party, citing analysis of House of Commons Library data, said it had cost the planet an extra 14.6 million tonnes of CO2 by 2017.
Speaking ahead of his visit to the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales on Friday, Mr Corbyn said: “The Conservative-Lib Dem decision to scrap this insulation programme has been a disaster.
“They cost millions of people hundreds of pounds and damaged our environment.
“The next Labour government will turn this failed approach on its head with a Green Industrial Revolution to tackle the climate emergency, create hundreds of thousands of good green jobs in every region and nation of our country and save millions of households money on their bills.
“From the mass installation of solar panels, insulating homes, building the Swansea Tidal Lagoon, expanding solar and wind energy and bringing the National Grid into public ownership, Labour’s Green Industrial Revolution will benefit working class people by cutting energy bills, creating good jobs in new, green industries and fighting the climate emergency.
“Social justice and climate justice are inseparable. Labour will tackle inequality and environmental destruction together.”
Peter Smith, director of Policy and Research at National Energy Action, a charity working to end fuel poverty, said: “Improving energy efficiency in fuel poor homes saves money, carbon and lives.
“Since scrapping Warm Front and halving the only remaining programme – ECO – the number of insulation measures and boilers installed has fallen off a cliff. As noted recently by the BEIS committee; very little support is now reaching those most in need and we are well off track to meet the UK Government’s statutory fuel poverty duties.”
A BEIS Spokesperson said: “Whether it’s an offshore wind engineer or an entrepreneur developing new green tech, there are now almost 400,000 people in ‘green collar jobs’ across the UK.
“It is all part of our world-leading mission to achieve net zero emissions target by 2050- a win-win for both the environment and the economy.”
