UK Government Plans Climate Change Adaption, UK Consumers Need To Adapt To £4,700 Energy Bills

Posted on 24. Jun, 2009 by Ross in Energy Prices, Government Policy, United Kingdom

The UK Government is preparing a Adaptation Sub-Committee to help Britain prepare for the effects of climate change, Defra announced today.

Meanwhile, a report (PDF) from price comparison company Uswitch is predicting that households have some adapting of their own to do, with the average energy bill set to quadruple by 2020.

Over the past five years, UK energy bills have doubled from an average of £580 per year. Extrapolating that trend, and factoring in the extra costs involved from new power plant construction, smart meter roll-outs and carbon credits reaches a figure of over £4,700 pounds. Even environmentalists who bemoan cheap energy preventing families from feeling motivated to reduce consumption would blanch at such exorbitant tariffs, and businesses failing to implement energy-saving projects now would find themselves with a substantial competitive handicap against more energy-streamlined competitors.

Talking about the study, Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at USwitch.com, said:

This is a wake-up call for us all. The £5,000 a year energy bill may seem like an outside possibility, but we have to remember that energy bills doubled in the past five years alone and that the huge investment needed just to keep the lights on in Britain will alone add £548 a year onto our bills. The fact is we are entering a new era of high cost energy and households will have to adapt their behaviour accordingly.

The Government, accepting that some effects of climate change are an inevitability no matter how substantial global action on carbon reduction targets may be, has begun setting up a specialist Westminster committee to help the country adapt to the forthcoming changes. Announcing the new Adaptation Sub-Committee, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said:

The recent publication of the UK Climate Projections shows how important it is for the country to prepare for the impacts of a changing climate. The Adaptation Sub-Committee will play a significant role in helping to achieve this. The founding members of the Sub-Committee are leading experts in their fields, and their knowledge will make a vital contribution in our efforts to adapt to climate change.

Adaptation measures used in the UK are likely to focus at first on water-related schemes: improved coastal and flood defences for high-risk areas, and improving the efficiency of water utility companies.

Image by Ian Wilson @ Flickr