The innovation charity, Nesta, has today welcomed the Government’s new target to reduce energy use by 15% by 2030, but says urgent measures will be needed to help families with another steep rise in energy bills.

Madeleine Gabriel, Director of Sustainable Future at Nesta, said:

“For too long the UK has been in an energy efficiency rut, with not enough progress in offering support for key measures and helping people take action themselves, so it is positive that the Government has announced a taskforce with a clear target for reducing energy consumption.

“But the Government needs to take rapid action to start meeting its target. With the Government raising the price of energy by 20% from April, families urgently need help now to reduce their energy use and save on their bills.

“The Government should launch a national energy saving campaign, providing trusted advice on how people can save energy to knock billions off both household bills and the cost of its own Energy Price Guarantee. It is important that the taskforce invests in getting the message out that anyone can reduce their energy use with free, easy and simple steps like reducing their boiler flow temperature. We know the demand is there - more than 130,000 people have already used the Money Saving Boiler Challenge - and the modest cost of an energy saving campaign could be easily covered by savings from the Government’s subsidy this winter.”

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Notes to editors

1. On 10 October, Nesta launched the Money Saving Boiler Challenge to help people who have combi boilers turn down their flow temperature. More than 130,000 people have already said they have used the tool, which can save households around £112 per year.
2. The Chancellor announced that the level of the Energy Price Guarantee will rise from £2,500 for a typical household now to £3,000 in April. This is a 20% increase in energy bills. In practice, this is actually a cap on the unit cost of electricity and gas, which are currently 34p/kWh for electricity and 10p/kWh for gas. We would expect these to increase to 12p/kWh for gas and 41p/kWh for electricity in April, provided there is no change to the levies on electricity bills which were removed by Prime Minister Liz Truss in the original Energy Price Guarantee.
3. For more information on the analysis or to speak to one of the experts involved, please contact Kieran Lowe, Media Manager, on 020 7438 2576 or [email protected]. Spokespeople are available for broadcast interviews.

About Nesta

We are Nesta, the UK's innovation agency for social good. We design, test and scale solutions to society's biggest problems. Our three missions are to give every child a fair start, help people live healthy lives, and create a sustainable future where the economy works for both people and the planet.

For over 20 years, we have worked to support, encourage and inspire innovation. We work in three roles: as an innovation partner working with frontline organisations to design and test new solutions, as a venture builder supporting new and early stage businesses, and as a system shaper creating the conditions for innovation.

Harnessing the rigour of science and the creativity of design, we work relentlessly to change millions of lives for the better. Find out more at nesta.org.uk