{"id":597597,"date":"2023-01-14T14:49:04","date_gmt":"2023-01-14T20:49:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/14\/net-zero-review-highlights-skills-shortage-and-procurement-issues\/"},"modified":"2023-01-14T14:49:04","modified_gmt":"2023-01-14T20:49:04","slug":"net-zero-review-highlights-skills-shortage-and-procurement-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/14\/net-zero-review-highlights-skills-shortage-and-procurement-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Net-zero review highlights skills shortage and procurement issues"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Regular changes in environmental policies and a skills shortage are holding the UK back from achieving its net-zero aims, a review has found.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Net Zero Review, an independent assessment carried out by former energy minister Chris Skidmore for the UK government, warned that continual changes of policy on limiting carbon emissions were \u201cundermining business confidence\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

He also called for the development of a new public procurement plan focused on low-carbon construction and low-carbon materials.<\/span><\/p>\n

The UK is committed to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, as well as a 68 per cent reduction in emissions compared with 1990 levels by 2030.<\/span><\/p>\n

Abrupt changes of policy in recent years, and a \u201clack of clear roadmaps\u201d, have led to projects having to compete for the same pool of labour and materials, leading to bottlenecks, the MP said; this is compounding the skill and material problems already seen throughout the built-environment sector.<\/span><\/p>\n

The UK faces a \u201chuge challenge\u201d to meet the skill requirements needed to make the transfer to net zero possible, Skidmore\u2019s review states. According to the industry experts consulted, supply chains and skill pools will need to \u201cgrow significantly to meet demand over the coming years\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Responding to the report, Federation of Master Builders (FMB) chief executive Brian Berry said \u201cat least a third\u201d of his trade body\u2019s members were struggling to hire bricklayers and carpenters.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to see a clear roadmap for skills and a market for retrofit so that local builders can make the transition to training up in new, green skills,\u201d he added.<\/span><\/p>\n

The report said \u201ccross-sectoral collaboration rather than competition\u201d could also help to minimise the effects of the skills shortage.<\/span><\/p>\n

The review furthermore backs the development of nuclear energy in the UK, pointing out that up to five nuclear plants currently in operation are set to shut down in the next decade, while just one new nuclear site, Hinkley Point C, is being built in their place.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSignificant efforts are therefore needed to not only maintain the current role of nuclear energy, but also for nuclear to help meet rising energy demand,\u201d it said.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, it called for faster decisions on central investment into storage capacity for hydrogen power.<\/span><\/p>\n

As well as speeding up investment decisions, Skidmore\u2019s review called for the development of a new public procurement plan focused on low-carbon construction and low-carbon materials by the end of this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c[That] would send strong signals to the sector and enable firms to test innovations and start to scale them up,\u201d it said.<\/span><\/p>\n

The FMB\u2019s Berry said construction was \u201craring to act on energy-efficiency improvements\u201d, but argued that there had been a lack of government action for \u201ctoo long\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat is abundantly clear from the Skidmore Review are the benefits of retrofitting \u2013 it\u2019s a win-win solution,\u201d Berry said. \u201cRetrofitting of existing homes lowers bills, warms homes, creates jobs and provides local builders with skills for the future.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe review points out what needs to be done by the government to make net zero a reality, and the industry stands ready to deliver on it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Consultancy WSP\u2019s executive director, Rachel Skinner, said there was a \u201cclear mandate\u201d for action.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSpeeding up investment and effort will reduce cost and climate risk, while helping the UK hold onto its leadership position on the world stage,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Skidmore Review helps to cut through net-zero complexity, recognising that success will rely as much on local change through delegation, clear information, meaningful incentives and trust, as it does on clear, stable government commitment to delivery.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In response to the review, business secretary Grant Shapps said: \u201cWith a wealth of talent and expertise, and a track record to be proud of, the UK is well placed to ensure that tackling climate change also brings new jobs and investment for businesses and communities.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Joshua Stein<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Regular changes in environmental policies and a skills shortage are holding the UK back from achieving its net-zero aims, a review has found. The Net Zero Review, an independent assessment carried out by former energy minister Chris Skidmore for the UK government, warned that continual changes of policy on limiting carbon emissions were \u201cundermining business<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":597598,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31507,661],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-597597","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-net-zero","8":"category-review"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597597","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=597597"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/597597\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/597598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=597597"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=597597"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=597597"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}