Environmental think tank Green Alliance has called on the chancellor to make a radical overhaul of the tax system to penalise manufacturers of inefficient products and to reward householders for 'green' living.
The call is based on a report by the Policy Studies Institute which concluded that measures to reduce energy consumption won't work unless accompanied by tougher policy measures.
The Institute's report reveals that domestic households currently account for 28% of the UK's greenhouse gas emissions, more than half Britain's water consumption and 10% of waste. It proposes a package of measures - called a Green Living Initiative - to discourage environmentally damaging behaviour. At a national level it proposes inefficiency charges on products that use comparatively large amounts of energy or water, or generate comparatively greater amounts of waste, such as disposable batteries and cameras, garden sprinklers and incandescent light bulbs. It also recommends increasing VAT on new homes from 0% to 5%, while reducing VAT on major refurbishments that meet standards set by the Code for Sustainable Homes.
At a local level, the report recommends Council Tax reductions for households who install insulation and energy conservation measures. It also calls for nationwide water metering to encourage water saving, but linked to Council Tax bands to ensure the measure doesn't impact adversely on poorer households. Finally, it says local authorities should be allowed to experiment with variable waste charging, so that they can charge households for the amount of unsorted rubbish they throw out.
Date:10 February 2006
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