We need a renewable heat incentive  

As a Minister I was proud to have been involved in the design and launch of the UK’s “Feed in Tariffs”, rewarding small-scale generators for electricity they produce by their own efforts. The scheme only went live in April and already sales of solar panels are up and the Solar PV market is growing fast. This means rising investment in the technology and new green jobs – as well as helping householders, small businesses and community groups cut their carbon footprints and cut their energy costs. I’m sure other technologies that help us cut carbon emissions will also benefit. We also designed a “Renewable Heat Incentive” and announced we would introduce this in April 2011. Heat is the biggest use of energy in the UK, responsible for almost half of UK emissions. We definitely need a strong and vibrant renewable heat industry especially when you consider that today only 1% of the...