The government and the energy regulator began consultation on proposals to move away from large centralized power production to community-based energy (known as 'distributed energy' or 'decentralized energy'), designed to help cut carbon emissions and improve efficiency.
Source: Distributed Energy: A call for evidence for the review of barriers and incentives to distributed electricity generation, including combined heat and power, Department of Trade and Industry (0870 150 2500)
Links: Consultation document | DTI press release
Date: 2006-Nov
A think-tank report said that tax revenues from the oil and gas sector should be used to invest in the transition to a sustainable energy system.
Source: Hooked on Oil: Breaking the habit with a windfall tax, New Economics Foundation, available from Central Books (020 8986 5488)
Links: Report | NEF press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Oct
A think-tank report said that progress on adopting a credible energy policy had been too slow, and that the government's energy policy review left the United Kingdom with no clear energy objectives.
Source: Dieter Helm, From Review to Reality: The search for a credible energy policy, Social Market Foundation (020 7222 7060)
Links: Report
Date: 2006-Oct
A report called for a more decentralized energy system, and examined the use of microgeneration. It made recommendations on housing and fiscal incentives to encourage consumer behaviour change in energy use, and additional policies needed for energy efficiency and renewables.
Source: Rebekah Phillips, Rebecca Willis, Tracy Carty and Russell Marsh, New Vision for Energy, Green Alliance (020 7233 7433)
Links: Report
Date: 2006-Aug
A report by a committee of MPs said that considerable uncertainty remained in relation to the cost of decommissioning and cleaning up civil nuclear sites.
Source: The Work of the NDA and UKAEA, Sixth Report (Session 2005-06), HC 1028, House of Commons Trade and Industry Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report
Date: 2006-Aug
The government published its review of energy policy. It said that new nuclear power stations could make a "significant contribution" to meeting the country's energy policy goals.
Source: The Energy Challenge: Energy review report 2006, Cm 6887, Department of Trade and Industry, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | Summary | DTI press release | Hansard | SDC press release | Ofgem press release | EST press release | FOE press release | Greenpeace press release | TUC press release | CBI press release | LGA press release | Conservative Party press release | Guardian report | BBC report
Date: 2006-Jul
A report said that small-scale micro-renewable technology applications - such as solar water heating and small wind turbines - should be allowed to go ahead without the need for a planning application. The government said that it accepted the recommendation.
Source: Householder Development Consents Review, Department for Communities and Local Government (0870 1226 236) | Press release 4 July 2006, Department for Communities and Local Government (020 7944 3000)
Links: Report | Appendix 1 | Appendix 2 | DCLG press release | BBC report
Date: 2006-Jul
A report by a committee of MPs said that the government was at risk of rushing into hasty decisions regarding future energy supply, and that the outcome of the energy review had been determined before adequate consideration of important evidence had taken place. It suggested that fears of an imminent energy gap might have been overstated. Before new nuclear build took place, the government needed to address some of the disadvantages that faced both nuclear and other low-carbon technologies: but it should be for the market to decide whether new nuclear power stations would provide an adequate return for investors.
Source: New Nuclear? Examining the issues, Fourth Report (Session 2005-06), HC 1122, House of Commons Trade and Industry Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | Committee press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Jul
A report by a committee of MPs said that Wales had the potential to develop and establish a leading indigenous, clean energy industry. But it said the United Kingdom government had failed to invest in clean coal technology and tidal power projects, and was over-reliant on windpower as a solution to future energy needs in Wales.
Source: Energy in Wales, Third Report (Session 2005-06), HC 876, House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | BBC report
Date: 2006-Jul
The Prime Minister said that the issue of a new generation of nuclear power stations was back on the agenda "with a vengeance", alongside a big push on renewables, and a step-change in energy efficiency.
Source: Speech by Tony Blair MP (Prime Minister), 16 May 2006
Links: Text of speech | FOE press release | Greenpeace press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-May
A report (by an official advisory body) said that there was no justification for bringing forward plans for a new nuclear power programme, and that any such proposal would be incompatible with the United Kingdom government?s own sustainable development strategy.
Source: Meeting the Challenge: Energy policy for the 21st century, Sustainable Development Commission (020 7944 4964)
Links: Report
Date: 2006-May
A report by a committee of MPs said that there was a danger of electricity black-outs within a decade without urgent investment in a new range of gas-fired power stations. Over the period 2006-2016, nuclear power could not contribute either to the need for more generating capacity or to carbon reductions, as sufficient capacity simply could not be built in time.
Source: Keeping the Lights On: Nuclear, renewables and climate change, Sixth Report (Session 2005-06), HC 584, House of Commons Environmental Audit Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Apr
A report said that nuclear power was the wrong option for tackling climate change. It would lock the government into an expensive technology that would fail to reduce carbon emissions.
Source: Catherine Mitchell and Bridget Woodman, New Nuclear Power: Implications for a sustainable energy system, Green Alliance (020 7233 7433)
Links: Report | Green Alliance press release
Date: 2006-Apr
A report said that offshore wind energy in the United Kingdom was unlikely to reach its full potential without additional support from the government.
Source: BVG Associates and Douglas Westwood, Offshore Wind: At a crossroads, British Wind Energy Association (020 7689 1960) and Renewables East
Links: Report | BWEA press release | BBC report
Date: 2006-Apr
The government published a strategy to increase local level energy production and reduce carbon emissions ('microgeneration'). The aim was to create conditions under which microgeneration became a realistic alternative or supplementary energy generation source for the householder, for the community, and for small businesses.
Source: Our Energy Challenge: Power from the people, Department of Trade and Industry (0870 150 2500)
Links: Strategy | DTI press release
Date: 2006-Mar
A report said that the United Kingdom's nuclear waste clean-up programme could cost more than 70 billion.
Source: NDA Strategy, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (01925 80 2001
Links: Report | NDA press release | FOE press release | BBC report
Date: 2006-Mar
A report (by an official advisory body) said that the United Kingdom could meet its climate change targets and satisfy growing energy demand without building a new generation of nuclear power stations.
Source: The Role of Nuclear Power in a Low Carbon Economy, Sustainable Development Commission (020 7944 4964)
Links: Report | SDC press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Mar
An article examined how to use economic instruments to reduce carbon emissions from the housing sector without causing negative impacts on the poorest households. The best approach was through a scheme involving energy audits, surcharges to council tax and stamp duty for homeowners who failed to make cost-effective energy efficiency improvements, and grants and loans to assist low-income households.
Source: Simon Dresner and Paul Ekins, 'Economic instruments to improve UK home energy efficiency without negative social impacts', Fiscal Studies, Volume 27 Issue 1, Institute for Fiscal Studies (020 7291 4800)
Links: Abstract
Date: 2006-Mar
An audit report said that the government's decision to bail out the nuclear power generator British Energy had left the taxpayer facing "a large and uncertain liability".
Source: The Restructuring of British Energy, HC 943 (Session 2005-06), National Audit Office, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | NAO press release | BBC report | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Mar
A report said that the Scottish Executive's target to have 40 per cent of electricity generated in Scotland from renewable sources was achievable.
Source: Thomas Boehme, Jamie Taylor, Robin Wallace and Janusz Bialek, Matching Renewable Electricity Generation With Demand, Scottish Executive (0131 556 8400)
Links: Summary | SE press release
Date: 2006-Feb
A paper examined the potential role of systematic reviews of evidence in the area of energy policy. It concluded that systematic reviews might only be appropriate for a subset of energy policy questions; and that priorities in research funding might need to change if their use were to become more widespread.
Source: Steve Sorrell, Improving the Evidence Base for Energy Policy: The role of systematic reviews, Working Paper 146, Science Policy Research Unit/University of Sussex (01273 686758)
Links: Working paper
Date: 2006-Feb
A Green Party report said that investment in renewable alternatives, together with energy efficiency and conservation measures, would deliver greater emissions reductions than nuclear power, at less cost and without the huge safety risks inherent in the nuclear option.
Source: David Toke and Simon Taylor, The Alternative Energy Report, Green Party of England and Wales (020 7272 4474)
Links: Report | Green Party press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Feb
A survey found that more than 4 in 5 local authorities did not believe they were making significant progress in tackling climate change. Almost half said that a general lack of support from their own councillors had been a key factor in limiting progress.
Source: Press release 8 February 2006, Energy Saving Trust (0845 727 7200)
Links: EST press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Feb
A report said that a broad range of technologies was needed to bridge an energy gap of up to 50 gigawatts by 2020. Without a diverse generation mix the power sector could fall short of the carbon dioxide emissions target by 30 per cent.
Source: 2020 Vision: The Next Generation, Deloitte & Touche LLP (020 7303 6410)
Links: Report | Deloitte and Touche press release
Date: 2006-Feb
A report examined whether microgeneration could become an effective alternative energy source in Wales.
Source: Jennie Bibbings, Powerhouses? Widening microgeneration in Wales, Welsh Consumer Council (029 2025 5454)
Links: Report | WCC press release
Date: 2006-Feb
A Member of Parliament brought in a Bill to establish a Renewable Energy Authority, charged with a duty to promote the use of renewable energy and energy conservation.
Source: Energy Bill, Desmond Turner MP, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Hansard
Date: 2006-Feb
The government began consultation on future energy policy.
Source: Our Energy Challenge: Securing clean, affordable energy for the long term, Department of Trade and Industry (0870 150 2500)
Links: Consultation document | DTI press release | Friends of the Earth press release | Guardian report
Date: 2006-Jan
A report (by an official advisory body) said that the problem of how to dispose of nuclear waste remained unsolved.
Source: Managing Our Radioactive Waste Safely, Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (020 7082 8496)
Links: Report | Friends of the Earth press release
Date: 2006-Jan
The government responded to a report by a committee of peers on renewable energy.
Source: Renewable Energy: Practicalities, and energy efficiency - government responses, Third Report, (Session 2005-06), HL 69, House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Response | Peers report
Date: 2006-Jan