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

General Election 2010

View of Parliament, Palace of Westminster With a general election now called by the Prime Minister, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, along with the rest of the Civil Service, moves into a period of restricted activity (sometimes referred to as election “purdah”).

This will last until the election has been held and a new Government has been formed. During this time we will continue to carry out essential business, and will respond to any requests for factual information, but most other external communication activities including anything other than factual updates to our website and social media channels, will be on hold.

Further information on the rules that the Ministers and the civil service will be following during purdah can be found in the official guidance published by Cabinet Office on their website.

DECC’s ongoing public consultations are still open but we will not be publicising them further during purdah.

To view this content you need JavaScript enabled in your browser.Alternatively, visit our News Pages.

Latest Developments

Low carbon rewards launch today to save money for homes and businesses - 01 April 2010

The introduction today of two carbon cutting Government incentive schemes will see homes and businesses playing a key role in contributing to UK emissions reductions of at least 34% on 1990 levels by 2020 through improved energy efficiency and small-scale low-carbon electricity. The Government’s Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC EES) for organisations and Feed in tariffs (FITs) will help to save money on fuel bills, reduce carbon emissions and generate their own low-carbon electricity.

Government kick-starts renewed push for global climate deal - 31 March 2010

The Government launched a new action plan on international climate change today. "Beyond Copenhagen; The UK Government's International Climate Change Action Plan", details what must be done to build on the progress made at Copenhagen.

The plan sets out the Government's belief that the low carbon transformation can be a major driver of economic growth and job creation - in the UK, in Europe and globally.

The Government also published plans today that set out how every major department will address the challenge of climate change in the UK.

Press release - Government kick-starts renewed push for global climate change deal
Read the "Beyond Copenhagen" document (PDF, 1.40Mb)
More information on the "Beyond Copenhagen" document in the International Climate Change section of this site
Press Release - Government departments publish plans to tackle climate challenges

Low Carbon Skills Consultation - 31 March 2010

DECC has today launched a joint consultation document together with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on low carbon skills. The consultation sets out the scale and nature of the low-carbon skills challenge, what government is already doing to tackle it, and seeks views on what more needs to happen.

The strategy includes co-funding the delivery of up to 2,500 apprenticeships in the emerging wind energy sector, in line with the sector’s ambition for the size of its workforce in 2017.

In this video, David Kidney talks about the low carbon skills consultation and what it means for employers and young people.

Insulate Today Launch - 30 March 2010

Today the launch of ‘Insulate Today’ brings together a group of leading businesses with Sainsbury’s Energy and ACT ON CO2 as part of a pilot scheme to make it easier, cheaper and more appealing for quarter of a million employees to insulate their homes and save hundreds of pounds in reduced energy bills. Devised by we will if you will ‘Insulate Today’ is a collaborative effort from Accenture, Aviva, HSBC, Sainsbury’s, ACT ON CO2, the Energy Saving Trust and EDF Energy.

Progress continues on development of new UK nuclear power - 25 March 2010

Today DECC published draft legislation providing for the creation of a new regulatory body called the Office for Nuclear Regulation (“the ONR”). In addition, the Government has also published two consultation documents relating to the financing of waste and decommissioning:

Alistair Darling on Budget Day (photo by Downing Street)

A Budget for Green Jobs - 24 March 2010

Investment in low carbon technologies was at the heart of the Budget delivered by Chancellor Alistair Darling today. Major low carbon components of the Budget included:

the creation of a Green Investment Bank
an Offshore Wind Infrastructure Competition
and the publication of the Energy Market Assessment [PDF 416KB] for Energy Market reform.

Ed Miliband said,

“ This budget will help propel the UK further and faster towards the green industries of the future.

"The green investment bank, new support for wind turbine manufacturing sites and the first findings of our work to reform the energy market are all winners."

Further details of the announcement are available in the DECC press notice.