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This article was originally posted by Housing Digital.
A cross-party think-tank has warned that the government must act now to make Britain’s homes resilient to a rapidly changing climate – or risk a “public health emergency”.
Radix Big Tent’s Housing Commission, launching its new report Homes Without Harm at Parliament yesterday, said millions of people are already being put at risk by poorly insulated, damp and increasingly overheated homes.
According to climate-management firm Tado, the UK has the worst-insulated housing stock in Europe, with homes losing heat three times faster than those in several neighbouring countries.
While cold, damp properties have long been recognised as a health hazard, the think-tank points out that extreme heat is becoming a major concern. During the 2022 heatwave, nearly 3,500 excess deaths were recorded, with the Centre for Ageing Better warning the toll is likely to rise as temperatures become more extreme.
The Commission highlighted that poor-quality housing costs society £18.5bn a year, including £1.4bn in NHS spending on preventable illness linked to damp, cold and overheating. With nearly 90% of the homes that will exist in 2050 already built, the group argues that retrofitting ageing properties is now essential – and that government policy is failing to keep up.
Its report sets out several measures ministers should adopt, including scrapping VAT on renovations to encourage owners of older homes to plug leaks and draughts. Radix Big Tent says a national retrofitting taskforce could create almost 300,000 jobs and tackle an estimated 19m substandard homes.
The think-tank also calls on the government to ensure all new-builds meet the long-delayed Future Homes Standard – intended to keep properties cooler during increasingly frequent heatwaves – and to accelerate reforms to energy markets so that electricity becomes cheaper than gas, making heat pumps a more viable alternative before gas boilers are phased out.
Other recommendations include clearer, more user-friendly indicators to help homebuyers understand the real-world health and cost implications of energy-inefficient properties, rather than relying on what the report describes as “modelled projections”.
Crucially, the Commission urges ministers to “rebrand” the national approach away from a narrow focus on decarbonisation and towards a clearer message that healthier, safer homes will save the NHS billions and improve quality of life.
Alex Notay, chair of Radix Big Tent’s Housing Commission and chief executive of the Housing Forum, said recent moves – including the publication of the Healthy Homes Standard and the adoption of Awaab’s Law – were welcome but insufficient.
“The continued delays around the Future Homes Standard, Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards and revised EPCs are making the already complex challenge of ensuring homes are sustainable and affordable even more difficult,” she said.
“Our latest report suggests some key nudges to ensure progress towards net zero is maintained but not at the cost of quality homes for our citizens. We strongly encourage the government to listen to the cross-sectoral voices we are providing here and take the steps needed to address homes that are causing harm.”