(UK Conservatives) Our Plan for a Low Carbon Economy

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.conservatives.com/News/News_stories/2009/01/Our_Plan_for_a_Low_Carbon_Economy.aspx

News story

Our Plan for a Low Carbon Economy

Friday, January 16 2009

David Cameron launched plans to create a low carbon economy in a live webcast today.

He unveiled a green paper setting out policies that will strengthen our economy, help guarantee energy security and protect our environment for future generations.

The changes we are proposing are similar in scale to the advent of the internet and the revolution in computing power that took place in the 1980s and 1990s. We believe that a revolution in our energy sector could create hundreds of thousands of new green collar jobs in the UK by 2020. If we do not make these changes soon other countries could take these valuable, skilled jobs.

The policies outlined by David include:

• An electricity internet – we will add computing intelligence to electricity networks by introducing a smart grid and the use of smart meters in homes. This will allow demand and supply to be intelligently managed, and pave the way for large-scale use of renewable energy sources.
• A system of feed-in tariffs – we will create a decentralised energy revolution by paying people who produce energy from renewable resources
• A new national recharging network – this will enable Britain to lead the world in replacing traditional cars with electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles
• New low carbon energy sources – we will enable biogas, methane produced from farm and food wastes, to replace up to 50% of our residential gas heating
• Low carbon buildings, transport and commerce – including a new entitlement for every home to be fitted with up to £6,500 of energy efficient improvements

Greg Clark, the Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary, said, "What we are proposing today is nothing less than an environmental and energy revolution, which would make Britain a world leader in moves towards creating a low carbon economy. It is a plan that will help create hundreds of thousands of jobs, raise skills and improve Britain's competitiveness."

And he stressed, "No longer will we need to be overly dependent on imported fossil fuels from unstable countries. Instead our electricity and heating will come from a wider range of more dependable and renewable sources, which will encourage innovative energy sources to be developed. This will help guarantee our energy security, reduce our carbon emissions and do all we can to protect the future."

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