In the news today are reports of the first zero-carbon home being unveiled in London. Housing minister Yvette Cooper has been touring the site, nodding in a ministerial way at the insulation, solar panels, water recycling and construction methods that went into the first home to meet the top standards of the government's sustainable housing code.
According to the report on this morning's Today programme (you can listen again for the next seven days), the ultra-efficient abode cost 40 per cent more to build than a 'normal' house but as more are built, the economies of scale will bring that down. As the government intends to make all new housing zero-carbon by 2016, that price fall should start in the near future, although Cooper was evasive when quizzed about exactly how many of the 160,000 homes planned in the Thames Gateway region would be zero-carbon. A rolling increase in standards was all she would commit to.
That aside, it's good to see the government finally agreeing with us on energy efficiency in homes. Back in 2005, when we kindly gave John Prescott (housing supremo at the time) a set of solar panels, there were few indications that environmental concerns were at the heart of housing policy. But it seems they've finally caught on to the massive carbon savings that smartly designed housing can deliver. Now we're waiting with baited breath to hear what they're planning for existing homes, which are responsible for 27 per cent of CO2 emissions in this country.
But more zero-carbon homes are on the horizon. Our political unit has been advising on the Gallions Park development, also in the Thames Gateway region and spearheaded by London mayor Ken Livingstone. These are being built as close to standard costs as possible, so that 40 per cent overcost is already beginning to look out-of-date.
Trust the Daily Mail to get to the heart of the issue though - zero-carbon homes will be exempt from stamp duty. Nice to know they have their priorities straight.
