Little Christmas Cheer For Green Business In UK’s Pre-Budget Report; Broken 10:10 Promises

Posted on 09. Dec, 2009 by Ross in Government Policy, United Kingdom

Back in April 2009, the UK broke new ground in releasing a Carbon Budget to work in tandem with the conventional economic budget. Stocked full of investments for energy efficiency and renewable energy for both households and businesses alike, the move garnered wide praise and managed to generate greater levels of publicity for measures largely anonymous to those that they affected, such as the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme.

Fast-forward seven months, however, and UK Chancellor Alistair Darling have left businesses looking to go green to save money with little to cheer about in his latest Pre-Budget Report. Focusing on populist measures ahead of a general election year (does anyone actually care about a reduction in Bingo Tax?!), the report contains no new investments in energy efficiency for businesses, and very little funding has been found for renewable energy either.

For a country intent on realising an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050,