Sunak eyes Irish-style energy efficiency one-stop shops

The Treasury is looking at rolling out Irish-style “one stop shops” for energy efficiency to boost flagging home upgrade efforts, and will unveil the extension of its windfall tax on energy profits to electricity generators within weeks, Rishi Sunak has said.

The chancellor of the exchequer gave evidence to the Treasury select committee on Monday (6 June) on his £15 billion cost-of-living support package, which was announced a week and a half ago.

Sunak, whose department has often been portrayed as a block on energy efficiency because of concerns about the costs of such programmes,  said relatively cheap measures could deliver “significant returns”.

“There are things that are relatively easy to do that will save people real money; insulation is obviously one, particularly cavity and wall insulation, and smart controls.”

He said such works, which could be done “in a day or two at maximum,” and for hundreds rather than thousands of pounds, could typically save households up to £300 off their energy bills.

Sunak told the committee that the government is looking at how the energy efficiency market is working, pointing to Ireland’s network of home upgrade one-stop shops that offer advice and support for households.

The shops are an important mechanism for helping to deliver the €8 billion package of increased support for home insulation recently announced by the republic’s government.

Pressed on the timescale for the government’s plans to extend its recently announced energy profits levy to electricity generators, Sunak said it would not be “months and months” and would be delivered “urgently”.

He also denied that the timing of the government’s cost-of-living announcement, which was published on the day after the release of civil servant Sue Gray’s report into Downing Street parties, was designed to distract attention from the scandal.

The chancellor said it was only possible to determine the scale of support, which should be offered, following Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley’s estimate that the price cap will rise to £2,800 this autumn.

He denied that the government had put “political pressure” on Brearley to reveal this estimate but said the Treasury is in constant touch with the regulator.

Sunak also rejected the suggestion that re-opening Centrica’s closed Rough North Sea gas store would have a big impact on energy prices.

“Given the scale of the increases, if we had more storage now it would be good, but we would still be sitting here looking at a very significant energy bills in the autumn.”

The chancellor was speaking ahead of the vote of confidence motion in prime minister Boris Johnson.