Energy Saving News
New UK Government wants to be "greenest government ever"
THE new UK Prime Minister David Cameron pledged the new coalition administration to become "the greenest government ever”, at a recent meeting of the Department of Energy and Climate Change.
A new government steering group will be run by Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne along with representatives from key government departments and the private sector.
Cameron announced the UK coalitions pledge in committing central public sector departments to cut emissions by 10% over the next year. This would be helped by a new innovation to publish energy being used by government departments in real time online, allowing the public to hold ministers and civil servants to account.
Three areas were highlighted that would need special attention by Huhne - the green economy, climate change and energy security.
"We've got a real opportunity to drive the green economy, to have green jobs and make sure we have our share of the industries of the future," Cameron said.
The pledge also promises to cut the Government’s energy bills by hundreds of millions of pounds.
Central government departments use around 8000 buildings and were responsible for 1.45 million tonnes of carbon emission in 2008/9, around 7% of public sector emissions.
Will Day the chair of the Sustainable Development Commission, an official government watchdog said: "This is an excellent first step, which has the potential to pay dividends in terms of saving public money through energy efficiency and contributing towards a sustainable, low-carbon economy for the future."
Tuesday 18th May 2010
