As directly elected representatives we have a duty to use our platform to speak on behalf of our communities on issues that matter nationally to them, and I’m sure that over the last year all members will have found one of the most pressing concerns being raised by residents is the huge surge in energy prices. With ever increasing instances of extreme weather, such as the prolonged very cold period that we experienced last winter, ensuring that everyone can afford to keep their home warm and comfortable is an urgent issue that can only be tackled by concerted national action.

That is why I tabled the Great Homes Upgrade Motion so that we can demand, as a united council, that the national government delivers the retrofitting programme essential for cutting heating bills in North Herts. Across our District the majority of homes, 56% in total, fall below a decent EPC C standard of energy efficiency, and there are 6193 households living in fuel poverty. The human cost of failing to improve our housing stock, which loses heat three times faster than homes in other northern European countries, is devastating for families across North Herts – as a country we can’t afford not to invest in a Great Homes Upgrade.

A national programme of retrofitting homes to EPC standard C, through measures like double-glazing and cavity wall, loft or solid insulation, would not only help to keep all our residents warm through the winter, and reduce the number of tragic excess winter deaths our country experiences every year, especially amongst the elderly, but it would also save North Herts residents an average of £400 off their bills, avoiding last winter’s hardship becoming an annual recurrence. There’s also no obvious path to net-zero without retrofitting our homes.

The energy we use in our homes accounts for 14% of our carbon emissions, and reducing the amount of energy we need to keep our homes at a comfortable temperature is one of the fastest and most effective ways we can tackle the climate emergency that this council has declared.

As a Co-operative Party Councillor, I am proud to move this motion in support of the Great Homes Upgrade. I’m prouder still that we were successful in getting it passed. We’ve sent a clear message to Westminster that our residents need a Great Homes Upgrade now.