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Welcome to the website for the Department of Energy and Climate Change

We face unprecedented challenges to our environment, our economy, and the future security of our energy supplies and the decisions we make now will affect the planet and our way of life for generations to come. DECC exists to tackle these challenges.

This site provides information about the Department and about the work we do. If your web browser supports RSS feeds, you can sign up to be kept informed whenever we add major news stories or speeches by our Ministers.

Latest Developments

Ed Miliband response to ASA ruling on Act on CO2 campaign - 17 February 2010

Ed Miliband has responded to the ruling by the ASA on the Act on CO2 campaign, saying:

"The ASA has comprehensively vindicated the accuracy of the TV advert we made and rebuffed those who attempted to use the advertising standards process to question the reality of manmade climate change."

"On the one issue where they did not find in our favour around one word in our print advertising, the science tells us that it is more than 90 percent likely that there will be more extreme weather events if we don't act. In any future campaign, as requested by the ASA, we will make clear the nature of this prediction."

"We will continue to provide public information about the dangers of climate change."

Clean coal industrial strategy - 17 March 2010

The Government has today published its Industrial Strategy for the development of carbon capture and storage across the UK [PDF 1.59MB], setting out how the UK can make the most from its knowledge and skills in engineering, geology and the subsea sector and become a centre for CCS innovation and business.

Ed Miliband said, “CCS presents a massive industrial growth opportunity for the UK. We have a strong, established and skilled workforce in precisely the sectors needed to get CCS deployed at scale. And we have some of the best potential sites in all of Europe for CO2 storage under the North Sea."

To facilitate the delivery of CCS in the UK and to help promote its rapid take up globally, a new Office of CCS starts work today in DECC.

'First test' of Copenhagen Accord at deforestation talks - 12 March 2010

Around 60 countries, including all the forest basin nations and the 6 donors who pledged $3.5bn at Copenhagen came together to discuss fast start funding and action on deforestation.

Speaking at the event, Climate Change Minister, Joan Ruddock, said;

"This meeting was the first test of the Copenhagen Accord. It demonstrated that donors and those with forest needs could find common interests and a way forward to achieve greater funding flows, better coordination and more effective action on the ground."

"It will also be important that we build on this partnership to secure longer-term finance to support the ambitious commitment from a number of rainforest nations to reduce emissions from REDD plus globally by 25% by 2015."

Read the full story on the DECC website

Warm Homes, Greener Homes - 02 March 2010

The Government has today published its Household Energy Management Strategy [PDF 739kb], setting out its plans for meeting its target for a reduction of 29% in carbon emissions from the household sector.

The strategy responds to the consultation conducted on Heat and Energy Saving last year, and sets out plans to meet both the overall 2020 goal, and interim commitments to ensure that, by 2015, every household will have installed loft and cavity wall insulation where it is practical to do so, and by 2020 up to 7 million homes will have received more substantial eco-upgrades, including improvements such as solid wall insulation or renewable energy generating technologies.

Ed Miliband said, “This shows we can meet the national interest of tackling climate change and reducing our dependence on foreign energy at the same time as we help people save money. The Warm Homes, Greener Homes Strategy [PDF 739kb], will remove the deterrent of upfront costs and reduce the hassle of the move to greener living. Making homes more energy efficient will help protect people from upward pressure on bills, tackle climate change, and make us less reliant on imported energy.”

Vouchers still available under government’s Boiler Scrappage Scheme - 15 February 2010

54,758 vouchers have been snapped up under the Government’s Boiler Scrappage scheme leaving around 70,000 vouchers worth a total of £28 million still up for grabs.

The scheme was launched in January to upgrade up to 125,000 household heating systems in England to cut carbon, save money on fuel bills and sustain work for the heating industry.

All the major energy companies which sell and install boilers (British Gas, E.On, npower and Scottish & Southern) have now matched the offer, giving householders potentially £800 off the cost of a new efficient boiler. Some manufacturing companies are also offering deals.

Cash Rewards for Low Carbon Electricity and Heating - 01 February 2010

Households and communities who install generating technologies such as small wind turbines and solar panels will from April be entitled to claim payments for the low carbon electricity they produce.

Ed Miliband today announced the Feed-in Tariff (FITs) levels and also published a blueprint for a similar scheme to be introduced in April 2011 to incentivise low carbon heating technologies. The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) will be a world first.

The schemes are designed to bring about a significant increase in the amount of locally produced green energy, as a contribution to the wider shift of the energy mix to low carbon.

The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan

The Government has published the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan, a route map to a low carbon country. The Transition Plan is the most systematic response to climate change of any major developed economy, and sets standards for others in the run up to crucial talks in Copenhagen in December.

More information on the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan and related documents is available in the publications section of this site.