The CPA has joined calls for the chancellor of the exchequer to abolish the carbon price floor in his upcoming autumn statement.
Speaking to an audience of nearly 600 senior industry leaders and government officials at the Construction Products Association鈥檚 autumn lunch, the organisation鈥檚 chairman Geoff Cooper said: 鈥淭he construction products sector in the UK is supportive of the government鈥檚 intent to deliver a low carbon, low cost built environment whilst securing the future of a vibrant, modern and innovative manufacturing sector.聽 However, like the ordinary householder, business is being considerably impacted by the rise in energy prices and the increasing insecurity of energy supply.
鈥淎ccording to a study conducted for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, by 2020 the UK鈥檚 electricity price is expected to have risen by more than three times that of Germany鈥檚.聽 A primary reason for this is the additional taxes on energy.
鈥淢uch of our manufacturing is energy-intensive: energy bills and taxes can be up to 30-35% of total production costs.聽 The need to maintain diversity and security of energy supply, and to meet emissions reductions targets must be balanced against the ability of the industry to pay.聽 Many firms have already invested in the latest technology to improve energy efficiency to the maximum level possible so further savings here are unlikely.鈥�
Mr Cooper, who is also chief executive of Travis Perkins, continued: 鈥淭he chancellor has said, 鈥榃e are not going to save the planet by putting our country鈥檚 manufacturing sector out of business鈥�, and so end up importing these same products.聽 His actions, however, speak louder than words as the minimal extra climate change agreement rebate on electricity from April 2013 has been more than eclipsed by the increases in renewable obligation costs and feed in tariffs this year, neither of which is compensated for energy intensive users.
鈥淚n this year鈥檚 autumn statement, therefore, we are joining the ranks of many senior industrialists by calling on the Chancellor to abolish the carbon price floor, or at the very least to a freeze to the rates of the tax.
鈥淚t is essential that the UK has a secure, low carbon energy supply at a price that does not jeopardise investment in UK manufacturing and sustained economic recovery.聽 We need a level playing field to ensure we can compete against international competitors to keep manufacturing in the UK.聽 This needs a concise and coherent regulatory environment and policy framework to allow confidence to invest.鈥�
Mr Cooper said that the CPA was also calling on the government to link the energy performance of the property to the stamp duty which the buyer pays, and offer a stamp duty refund where the new home owner improves the performance within the first 18 months of ownership.聽
鈥淲e believe this will be highly effective in driving change right at the time homeowners are most likely to make such improvements,鈥� he said. 鈥淎lso, crucially, our model shows that such an incentive would not leave the Treasury out of pocket.鈥�
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