黑洞社区

Up to a third of new homes could be exempt from meeting the government鈥檚 zero carbon standard, under plans outlined this week in the Queen鈥檚 speech.

In the Queen鈥檚 speech on Wednesday the government committed to passing the long-awaited legislation needed to set up the 鈥渁llowable solutions鈥� mechanism, designed to allow builders to offset carbon emissions off-site, seen as the final part of the zero-carbon definition.

However, the government also said that homes built on 鈥渟mall sites鈥� will be exempt from the requirement to meet the zero carbon standard in 2016. The government has not said how it will define 鈥渟mall sites鈥�, and has promised to issue a consultation on the level 鈥渟oon鈥�. It already defines schemes of less than 10 units as 鈥渕inor developments鈥� in the planning system, but a spokesperson for the Home Builders Federation said sites of up to 50 homes would be 鈥渁 good starting point for the debate鈥� on where the exemption should kick in.

I suspect there has been pull-back on this from the treasury, and I regret that

Andrew Stunell MP, Lib Dems

An analysis, undertaken by construction data company Barbour ABI for 黑洞社区, of residential planning applications submitted in the last year, shows that 12.4% of proposed new homes are on sites of less than 10 homes.

However, if the bar is set at 50 homes, the analysis shows that over a third 鈥� 36.4% 鈥� of new homes would be exempt from hitting the full zero carbon standard.

Housebuilding lobby groups welcomed the promise to set out the government鈥檚 allowable solutions regime, and the proposed exemption for small sites, with the Federation of Master Builders saying it would create 鈥渕ore local homes.鈥�

However, environmental groups have reacted angrily to the news, with the UK Green 黑洞社区 Council describing it as 鈥渄eeply worrying.鈥�

The former minister in charge of the zero carbon policy, Liberal Democrat MP Andrew Stunell, also hit out at the proposed exemption. He told 黑洞社区: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think there is any reason to exempt any buildings from this regime. The whole point of allowable solutions is to give developers the ability to mitigate carbon emissions off-site where it isn鈥檛 possible on the site.

鈥淭his government has said it wants to be the greenest ever, but at every stage there has been pull-back from the Treasury. I suspect that there has been pull-back on this from the Treasury, and I regret that.鈥�

Nina Skorupska, chief executive of the Renewable Energy Association, said the announcement was 鈥渙ne of the worst row-backs on green policy of the whole coalition government鈥�.