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Almost all new homes in England will be fitted with solar panels within two years under plans to be announced by ministers, it has emerged.
The plans would see housebuilders mandated to install solar panels on the roofs of new properties by 2027, which the government argues will slash energy bills and boost its net zero drive.
The change would reportedly add around £3,300 to the cost of building a semi-detached or terraced house, rising to around £4,000 for a detached property, while saving an average household more than £440 per year on energy bills.
The plans, seen by The Times, would force 80 per cent of new homes to have solar panels equivalent to 40 per cent of a building’s ground area. Another 19 per cent would have slightly fewer, and just 1 per cent of new homes would not have any solar panels.
An official told the paper: “We believe this proposal has the benefits of ensuring that the majority of new homes will be built with solar panels but that there is flexibility for legitimate cases when reduced or no solar panel coverage is appropriate.”
Currently just two in five newly built properties have solar panels, and ministers faced industry pressure to lower the number of new homes that would be required to have them.
But the installation of solar panels on new homes, as Labour targets 1.5 million new homes by the end of the decade, forms a key part of its net zero plans and its pledge to lower average household energy bills by £300.
Greenpeace welcomed the “common-sense” decision. “For too long we’ve wasted the free energy that falls on the roofs of houses every single day,” Lily Rose Ellis, a climate campaigner at the group, said.
She added: “It shows the drive for net zero can slash both emissions and bills. The government must now ensure that everyone feels the benefits of cheap solar on their roofs, as well as every hospital and school, so they too can enjoy huge savings and use that cash to improve our public services. “
It comes after the Local Government Association (LGA) this week called for all new builds to have rooftop solar panels
The organisation, which represents town halls, pointed to a recent report from the Resolution Foundation which found domestic solar panels could deliver savings on bills of £440 on average for households which had them.
Downing Street this week defended Labour’s net zero policies after Sir Tony Blair attacked any strategy that limits fossil fuels in the short term as “doomed to fail”.
The Labour former prime minister argued that the current climate approach “isn’t working”, with the debate having “become irrational” and people “turning away from the politics of the issue because they believe the proposed solutions are not founded on good policy”.
“In developed countries, voters feel they’re being asked to make financial sacrifices and changes in lifestyle when they know that their impact on global emissions is minimal,” Sir Tony wrote in the foreword for a report from the Tony Blair Institute (TBI).
But Downing Street insisted that Sir Keir Starmer’s Government’s approach has a minimal impact on people’s lives.
The former prime minister has since rowed back on his comments and insisted he supports the government’s climate plans.
A government spokesperson said: “We have always been clear that we want solar panels on as many new homes as possible, because they are a vital technology to help cut bills for families, boost our national energy security, and help deliver net zero.
“Through the Future Homes Standard we plan to maximise the installation of solar panels on new homes, as part of our ambition to ensure all new homes are energy efficient, and will set out final plans in due course.”
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