LONDON (Reuters) – Legal & General
Britain said this week it would spend 3 billion pounds ($3.8 billion) on improving the energy efficiency of homes and public buildings, as part of a 30 billion pound package to head off an unemployment crisis.
Investors globally have become increasingly vocal in pushing for changes in the way countries and companies respond to the risks of climate change.
L&G, a major investor in real estate and infrastructure and one of Britain’s largest insurers, set out its proposals in an open letter to the government.
The insurer said that Britain should restore net zero carbon standards for new homes, legislate to improve transparency on how much energy is used by commercial buildings, and incentivise businesses to reach net zero targets through renewable energy,
“Whilst government may be focused on its ‘build, build, build’ agenda, it must not lose sight of how this – if not regulated appropriately – will have an irreversible impact on climate change,” L&G said in the letter.
The European Union has put fighting climate change at the heart of its 750 billion euro fund to aid recovery from the coronavirus crisis.
L&G said that all homes it builds would be capable of operating at net zero carbon emissions by 2030.
It is also expanding its engagement with companies on climate change to the steel and cement sectors, which it said were crucial in reducing emissions in building materials.
(Reporting by Carolyn Cohn and Simon Jessop)
