Carbon budgeting

Estimates for the average cost per home range from a steep £50,000 to a very hopeful £10,000, with the average likely to be between £20,000 and £30,000 when alternative technologies have matured and economies of scale kick in. The problem is: who is going to pay? The answer is, as always, all of us.

It’s a complex problem, so don’t go looking for a simple solution. A lot depends on whether we want a single government-controlled funding stream or private sector-style competition to control prices.

Experience of the private sector making strategic investments in rail and now electricity infrastructure does not fill us with confidence. Then again, public sector inefficiency spawned the privatisation of utility services.

I favour a single pot with in-built competitions to select suppliers and contractors. If we eliminated the need for carbon-based fuels altogether, the fuel bill would disappear - and all that money could be spent on measures to reduce the use of carbon fuels.

We also have budgets going forward to replace condensing boilers every 10 or so years. In a zero carbon house you won’t need a boiler, so that budget could go into the pot as well.

Slightly less direct sources of funding could include worklessness budgets (both benefits and training costs) and cutting spending on treating cold-related illnesses.

The nearest model would be the Student Loan Company. Why not a carbon reduction loan company?

Half a trillion seems a lot, but it doesn’t have to be spent all at once. Over 40 years it becomes a more manageable number. And don’t forget, it is only one third of what we spent last year bailing out the banks. The banks will only just pay back the cash they owe. With fuel saving, we will eventually make a surplus.

Richard Baines, director of sustainable development, Black Country Housing Group