Latest news with #newHomes
E&E News
a day ago
- Business
- E&E News
Here comes the sun: Vast majority of new UK homes to be fitted with solar panels
LONDON — The vast majority of new U.K. homes will have rooftop solar panels installed by default, the government has announced. The new policy will mean residents of new-build homes will save up to £530 per year compared with the energy price cap, the government estimates. The announcement comes in advance of the Future Homes Standard, to be published in autumn, which will set the regulations and guidelines for newly built homes. Advertisement The government confirmed Friday that solar panels will be included in that plan, leading to installations across the vast majority of new homes.
The Independent
4 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Most new homes will have solar panels under Labour target, Ed Miliband confirms
Ed Miliband has suggested that 'vast majority' of new homes in England could be required to have solar panels installed. This announcement follows Downing Street's confirmation a month prior that the panels should be installed on as many new properties as possible. There is speculation that ministers may make them a mandatory requirement on new builds by 2027. Speaking to the BBC, the former Labour leader and energy secretary described the proposed policy as "just common sense" and said the panels should be "almost universal" on English homes. The Future Homes Standard, set to be published later this year, will outline the changes to regulations. The previous Conservative Government considered a proposal that would have mandated rooftop solar panels to cover 40 per cent of a building's ground area or equivalent. 'The problem about the previous system was that it said you would had to have a certain percentage of coverage of solar panels, but if you couldn't achieve that percentage, you didn't have to do anything at all,' Mr Miliband said. 'Under our plans, we are not going to say that. We are going to say even if you can't hit 40 per cent you will still have to have some solar panels, except in rare, exceptional cases.' He added that the number of homes fitted with solar panels needed to be 'much higher'. The policy is estimated to add between £3,000 and £4,000 to the cost of construction, but to then save owners more than £1,000 on their annual energy bills, according to the Times, which first reported the change. Asked in May whether housebuilders would be legally required to fit the panels, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's official spokesman said: 'Of course we want to see solar panels on as many new homes as possible. 'The Future Homes Standard, which will be published in the coming months, will include measures to drive this, we're working on the detail of that and will provide an update on that in due course. 'But it's good news for householders who want lower energy bills.' Under the Government's new proposals, 80 per cent of new builds would reportedly be required to have solar panels covering 40 per cent of their ground area, while 19 per cent would have slightly fewer because of exemptions, including roof pitch and overshading. Ministers last year rejected a private members' Bill aiming to force housebuilders to install solar panels on the roof of every new home, saying the proposals would potentially slow down construction and add to building manifesto included a pledge to build 1.5 million new homes over the course of the Parliament.
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Miliband: I'll force solar panels onto ‘vast majority' of new homes
Developers will be forced to install solar panels on the 'vast majority' of new homes, Ed Miliband has said. The Energy Secretary said plans for a massive increase in rooftop solar power were 'just common sense' and should become 'almost universal' across the country. Four in five new-builds will reportedly be required to have solar panels covering 40 per cent of their ground area under new proposals, while 19 per cent would be allowed to have slightly fewer because of exemptions such as those relating to roof pitch. Mr Miliband claimed the move could save a typical homeowner £500 a year with their energy bills – despite industry fears it will add thousands of pounds to developers' costs. It comes days after he defeated a separate attempt by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves to slash funding for the warm homes scheme, a £13.2 billion project to upgrade housing insulation and install other energy saving measures. Warning that the current proportion of new build homes with solar panels, at 40 per cent, was not high enough, he said: 'It's got to be much, much higher than that. 'It's got to be almost universal. There will be rare exceptions where solar panels won't be on, if they simply will make no difference. 'But for the vast, vast majority of homes, homes will be built, the solar panels will be there – saving something like £500 for the typical homeowner. 'It's just common sense.' Mr Miliband's comments, in a BBC interview, come a month after Downing Street confirmed the panels should be installed on as many new properties as possible, amid speculation that ministers will make them a mandatory requirement for developers by 2027. Changes to regulations will be laid out in the Future Homes Standard, due to be published this autumn. The previous Conservative government considered a proposal that would have mandated rooftop solar panels to cover 40 per cent of a building's ground area or equivalent. Mr Miliband said: 'The problem about the previous system was that it said you would have to have a certain percentage of coverage of solar panels, but if you couldn't achieve that percentage, you didn't have to do anything at all. 'Under our plans, we are not going to say that. We are going to say even if you can't hit 40 per cent you will still have to have some solar panels, except in rare, exceptional cases.' The policy is expected to add between £3,000 and £4,000 to the cost of construction, but supporters claim it would save owners more than £1,000 on their annual energy bills. Labour's manifesto included a pledge to build 1.5 million new homes over the course of the Parliament. It comes after Miliband called for car parks across Britain to be turned into solar farms. However, there have been a number of high profile fires recently that have been attributed to the panels. Last month, a faulty solar panel was blamed for a fire at a maternity hospital which led pregnant women and babies to be evacuated from the building in Bristol. They were also said to have probably been the cause of a fire that severely damaged a £1.5 million home in Dorset during the same month.
