Huppert Receives Assurances On Green Deal's Credentials

Cambridge MP Julian Huppert

MP Julian Huppert has received assurances from the government that its new Green Deal will give investors long-term confidence to invest in companies tackling climate change, such as the newly-launched Cambridge Retrofit scheme.

Energy and Climate Change Minister, Gregory Barker paid tribute to the organisation which is working to retrofit buildings throughout the City to help make Cambridge the first UK city to meet national carbon reduction targets.

“My department is already working with Cambridge Retrofit which is just the sort of ambitious city-wide retrofit programme the Green Deal is designed to support,” he said during Questions in the House of Commons.

Julian welcomed Mr Barker’s endorsement saying: “Cambridge Retrofit is indeed an excellent programme which will make a huge difference.”

And he asked the Minister: “How will the government ensure there is the stability of energy and climate policies in the long term so investors are willing to put finance into major schemes such as Cambridge Retrofit?”

Mr Barker replied: “We know what investors want; they want TLC, transparency, longevity and certainty and unlike previous short term or stop go policies, the Green Deal is designed to run well into the 2020s giving investors exactly the sort of longevity and certainty they need.”

Later Julian said: “This is very welcome news. I am delighted that the government has shown this commitment to the Green Deal and the fight to tackle climate change.

“For major programmes such as the one run by Cambridge Retrofit, the confidence of investors to put their money into green, carbon reduction companies is vital. These companies rely on the government having a strong, green agenda and that has been clearly demonstrated today.”

Cambridge Retrofit 40-Year Venture Website

Huppert Quizzes Government On Ethical Pensions

Cambridge MP Julian Huppert

Cambridge MP Julian Huppert has quizzed the government on the action it is taking to make sure pension holders have the chance to invest their retirement funds in ethical companies and not just those offering short-term returns.

He paid tribute to Cambridge Retrofit, who aim to retrofit Cambridge buildings by 2050. He spoke at their launch last week, welcoming the landmark energy efficiency initiative to make Cambridge the first UK city to reach national targets of an 80 per cent reduction in carbon emissions.

Julian told Parliament that he wants pension fund trustees to look closely at investing funds in companies such as this.

He asked Pensions Minister, Steve Webb in the House of Commons: “How will he make sure that trustees are aware that their fiduciary duties do not prevent them from doing this? How will he communicate this, as many of them seem to be unaware of this?”

Mr Webb assured Julian that trustees are allowed to look at wider social aspects of their investments, and that the pension regulator communicates regularly with trustees and provided a tool kit on his website setting out trustees’ duties.

He also highlighted that "auto enrolment does provide the opportunity for ethical investment, for example the National Employment Saving Trust, will specifically have an ethical fund for people who want to invest in that way,” he said, “ and I hope that his schemes will seek to find investments through that particular route.”

Julian said later: “We have a huge number of companies in this country working on programmes which aim to improve our environment, reduce inequality and generally make life better for us and future generations.

“These companies need investment to grow and flourish and pension fund trustees should be looking at them seriously. We should be looking to the companies of the future, those that have excellent ethical credentials and that are working towards what we want to achieve environmentally.”