Energy needs

Climate change must be tackled but the UK also must ensure it has secure energy supplies at affordable prices

The government will publish a white paper around the end of the year on energy policy for the next 30 or 40 years

Nuclear power

Decisions on replacing Britain's nuclear power stations need to be made in the next few years

If nothing is done, the share of electricity generated by nuclear will fall from just under 20% now to 6% in 15 years' time

"New nuclear power stations would make a significant contribution to meeting our energy policy goals," says the review - if existing capacity is replaced carbon emissions would be lower by the equivalent of 22 gas-fired power stations

The Health and Safety Executive will develop guidance for potential promoters of new nuclear power plants by early next year

The private sector will have to fund, build and operate nuclear plants and cover decommissioning costs

Safety and security will be "paramount" for building new nuclear plants

The planning rules for nuclear and other new energy plants needs to be overhauled

Saving energy

Cutting the amount of carbon-polluting electricity generators will not be enough to meet the UK's target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 - energy must be saved, too

Consumers need better information about the amount of energy used, "smart metering", clearer energy bills and more information on home energy efficiency

The government will work with industry on making domestic appliances more efficient and phase out wasteful goods - saying 7% of all electricity is used by appliances left on standby

Government-owned properties should be carbon neutral by 2012

Ministers will encourage people to make their homes energy efficient

Energy suppliers must get incentives to make households more energy efficient, such as selling more insulation

Emissions trading

The government is planning an emissions trading scheme for the 5,000 large British businesses and public services not covered by the European trading scheme

There must be higher prices for carbon polluting generators

Transport

Fuel efficiency is improving. The use of lower carbon fuels, especially biofuels, will be encouraged

There will be most cost effective opportunities to save carbon as new technologies are developed

The target for the amount of transport fuel coming from renewable sources could be raised from 5% to 10% by 2015

Cleaner energy

More must be done to encourage smaller scale electricity generators - and combined heat and power plants - sited close to where the power is used

Low carbon alternatives such as bio mass, solar power and heat pumps will be encouraged

Renewables

Electricity companies will have to provide 20% of energy from renewables - up from the current 15%

There will be consultations on banding the rules on renewables to encourage the growth of off shore wind power and tidal plants

Fossil fuels

Coal fired power still meets a third of electricity demand but its heavy carbon emissions must be tackled

Carbon capture and storage could cut emissions by 80-90% from fossil fuels

Carbon dioxide can be stored in old oil fields - the UK is working with Norway to develop this and plans will be in the pre-Budget report

Carbon capture could lead to saving several millions tonnes of carbon by 2020

Steps must be taken to secure gas supplies

BBC NEWS 11 July 2006

Our Energy Future - Creating a Low Carbon Economy

From heating and lighting to transport, industry and communications, energy is fundamental to almost everything we do. We expect it to be available whenever we want it, to be affordable, safe and environmentally sustainable.

'Our Energy Future – Creating a Low Carbon Economy' defines a long-term strategic vision for energy policy combining our environmental, security of supply, competitiveness and social goals. It builds on the Performance and Innovation Unit's Energy Review, published in February 2002, and on other reports which have looked at major areas of energy policy.

Energy White Paper: our energy future - creating a low carbon economy

The implementation of the White Paper is being taken forward via the Sustainable Energy Policy Network (SEPN).

Because energy requires very long-term investment we look ahead to 2050 to set the overall context. We set out the challenges we face on the environment, the decline of our indigenous energy supplies and the need to update our energy infrastructure and the policies we need to pursue over the next twenty years and beyond to meet these challenges.

As we address these three challenges, we will have four goals for our energy policy:

to put ourselves on a path to cut the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions - the main contributor to global warming - by some 60% by about 2050 with real progress by 2020

to maintain the reliability of energy supplies

to promote competitive markets in the UK and beyond, helping to raise the rate of sustainable economic growth and to improve our productivity ...

DTI 2003