- Sadiq invests £10 million in green projects that will support around 1,000 green jobs to boost London’s economic recovery and tackle the twin dangers of air pollution and the climate emergency.
- The fund will address inequalities exposed by the pandemic – with funding provided to support those most likely to experience cold, damp homes, poor air quality and with limited access to green space.
- A key step towards the Green New Deal mission as agreed by the London Recovery Board which aims to create tens of thousands of jobs through doubling the size of London’s green economy sector by 2030.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, today launched the first part of London’s Green New Deal fund with £10 million invested in projects to boost green jobs, tackle the climate emergency and address inequalities. This sits alongside the investment he is making to support action on the climate and ecological emergency through other City Hall programmes on housing, adult education, skills and transport.
The first phase of the fund will secure around 1,000 jobs for Londoners, and support the green industries that are crucial to meeting the city’s climate targets and recover from the economic and social impacts of COVID-19. The jobs will be in areas such as solar panel installation and other programmes to make homes more energy efficient.
New data shows that London’s £48 billion green economy now supports five per cent of jobs in the capital – it is worth more than the construction and manufacturing sectors combined and has grown rapidly over the last decade, creating more than 161,000 new jobs in that time*. The Mayor’s Green New Deal Fund supports the London Recovery Board’s ambition to double the size of the green economy in London to £100 billion by 2030, an ambition that would kick-start greater job growth over the next decade. The pan-London Recovery Board – co-chaired by the Mayor of London – co-ordinates the planning for London's future post-COVID.
The fund will also tackle inequalities exposed by the COVID-19 crisis. London has some of the highest levels of fuel poverty in the country with one in nine** London households unable to meet the cost of heating their homes. Energy efficiency and low-carbon heat projects will cut energy bills and improve living conditions for thousands of Londoners. Funding will be provided to green London Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), in particular supporting Black Asian Minority Ethnic and female-led enterprises, and also support London Living Wage paid internships for those starting their careers into cleantech businesses – which are business that develops solutions to environmental challenges through technology.
The Mayor’s Green New Deal demonstrates Sadiq’s world-leading commitments to tackle the climate emergency including setting a bold target to make London a zero carbon city by 2030 and having a climate plan for London that is compatible with the highest ambition of the Paris Climate Agreement. Once projects from the first £10m fund are completed, they will save up to 20,000 tonnes of CO2 per year directly and support the ability to rapidly scale up further carbon savings across London.
The new fund will boost the green economy by supporting SME jobs as well as creating and retaining a range of jobs such as solar panel installers, designers, engineers and various jobs in construction including site managers, supervisors and builders.
This initial £10m investment from the GLA will be broken down into three areas:
- Decarbonising the Built Environment
Tackling emissions from heating and powering London’s buildings. Programmes will make homes more energy efficient and ensure London is supplied with more green energy through district energy networks and other clean sources such as solar. - Green Transport and Public Realm
Tackling transport emissions and encouraging walking, cycling and electric vehicles. Projects will also improve access to green spaces and the natural environment while increasing London’s resilience and adaptation to climate change impacts. - Green Foundations
Supporting growth of new and existing businesses in the green economy. Projects will create job opportunities and develop skills for Londoners to exploit the opportunities that the transition to a low carbon circular economy represents.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said: “I am delighted to be investing £10 million in projects that will create green collar jobs in London as part of our Green New Deal that will both support our economic recovery from COVID, and tackle inequalities faced in our city.
“The funding will directly help those most likely to experience cold and damp homes, and also support Londoners with limited access to green space. We must rebuild our city post COVID so that it’s cleaner, greener and fairer.
“With just under a year to go until the UK hosts COP26, the government this week set out its ambition for meeting its climate targets, but this can only be achieved if the Government gives cities the power and funding they need to deliver. We have a proven track record that shows when cities are empowered to deliver, they are given the ability to deliver the transformation that we need to our economy and society.”
Lord Karan Bilimoria, CBE DL, CBI President, said: “London’s Green New Deal prioritises bold, low-carbon investment which will be welcomed by business who want a green recovery from the pandemic that helps us towards net-zero emissions.
“The creation of 1,000 new skilled jobs for Londoners, and support for SMEs, are welcome moves. This will help bring about the green energy upgrades for homes, and clean transport links, that will give Londoners more opportunities to reduce their carbon emissions.
“Establishing effective partnerships between public and private sectors will be vital if London is to meet the Mayor’s goal of becoming a zero carbon city by 2030. Firms across London’s fast-growing green economy stand ready to support this.”
Mark Watts, Executive Director of C40 Cities, said: "Achieving a green and just recovery from the COVID crisis is essential to create jobs, save lives and build the foundations for a zero carbon economy. London is a global leader on climate and with this Fund, Mayor Khan once again is setting an example for others to follow. Actions like these are how cities around the world can collectively deliver a Global Green New Deal."
Jayne Clare, Managing Director, Energetik said: “We’re delighted to receive this funding which will be spent in two distinct areas. The first element will allow us to pilot and establish a methodology for retrofit connections at scale. Space heating and hot water accounts for over 20% of the UK’s carbon emissions and is one of the biggest challenges to decarbonising the UK. This project will help Energetik retrofit future-proofed, very low carbon heating infrastructure to existing homes to supporting Enfield and London with its decarbonisation targets. In addition, we’re very pleased to receive funding which will support the creation of a cross-borough, large scale heat network in north London. By providing our neighbouring boroughs with the same low-carbon heat we have access to, we are able to directly assist in their local decarbonisation plans.”
Syed Ahmed, Chair of Community Energy London said: "The Mayor's London Community Energy Fund has been hugely successful in driving community-led action on carbon reduction and fuel poverty projects across the city. London is now in the vanguard of community energy and at the same time we are seeing more and more Londoners who want to get involved. We are excited with this new expanded fourth round of the London Community Energy Fund, and groups will continue to focus on delivering projects that support those communities most affected by the pandemic."
Notes to editors
Londoners who have expressed strong support for a green recovery will be engaged in the drive to tackle emissions and will be equipped to benefit from the opportunities in transitioning to zero carbon through the green skills academy and the 2030 Future Neighbourhoods projects. These will tackle air pollution, cut carbon and make streets greener in two to four areas of the capital, creating a framework that can be replicated across London. The expanded London Community Energy Fund will work with community groups to both develop and fund local energy projects including the installation of solar panels and energy efficiency measures in community buildings including schools and GP surgeries. Private homeowners can contribute to carbon savings directly through installing solar panels on homes at a reduced cost through Solar Together London.
The Mayor has also secured an additional £3m from ERDF for Local Energy Accelerator – to support development of large-scale clean and locally generated energy projects. This brand new £6m programme will provide expertise and support organisations to develop clean and locally generated energy projects using renewable heat sources (including river water and waste heat from London Underground).
The London Recovery Board’s nine recovery Missions can be found here (p.6): https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/recovery_programme_overview_-_151020.pdf
Breakdown of the 10m:
Decarbonising the Built Environment
- North London District Energy
Building on £30 million of investment already secured, the funding provides the capacity to capture a further 20MW of waste heat from the Edmonton Energy Recovery Facility to enable the supersizing and extension of the heat network from Enfield into Hackney and Haringey, providing near zero carbon heating to a further 8,000 properties, an increase of 50 percent on the original project.
- London Community Energy Fund
The fourth phase of the London Community Energy Fund will support community energy projects such as solar panels on schools and community centres and electric vehicle charge points. The new fund includes up to £500,000 for community energy groups to deliver projects, as well as £165,000 for project development. The previous rounds of funding enabled 48 community energy projects across 81 buildings, saving up to 1,500 tonnes of carbon per year. Applications for grants will be open by the end of this month.
- Old Oak and Park Royal Solar PV programme
This programme will develop and deliver solar panels on rooftops across the Old Oak and Park Royal industrial estates over a three-year period.
Phase one will install around 10,000 m2 of solar panels across ten business premises on the Park Royal estate. The wider opportunity across industrial roofs in the OPDC area has been assessed as capable of providing 213 MW of power, which could save up to one million tonnes of CO2e over 25 years and creating 820 installation jobs over a five year period. It will also support further EV charging points for other vehicles
- Solar Together London
Solar Together has so far successfully supported the installation of solar panels on almost 1,000 London homes. It uses a group-buying model to unlock significant savings from suppliers (up to 35 per cent in previous rounds) which makes solar more affordable for Londoners. This round of funding will drive a London-wide programme which will also include up to £60,000 to support installers to boost their training and employment opportunities and grow the supply chain.
Green Transport and Public Realm
- Bus electrification and electric vehicle charging
The project will invest in the design and delivery of power infrastructure for bus garages in London, which will ultimately enable the transformation of London’s 9,000 buses into a zero-tailpipe emission fleet.
- 2030 Future Neighbourhoods
2030 Future Neighbourhoods will support exemplar projects that transform whole neighbourhoods in the capital into zero emission neighbourhoods but also providing benefits across a range of environmental priorities. The programme will support projects that include:
- retrofitting homes and commercial and public buildings
- decarbonising energy systems
- zero emission transport including walking and cycling
- supporting green spaces and public realm that is climate adapted, resilient, supports fairer access to green space and supports health
- zero waste, circular economy and driving behavioural change Particular attention will be given to ensure underrepresented groups are included in design and benefit from outcomes. Project areas will look and feel different to other neighbourhoods, showcasing what can be achieved, attract other sources of capital investment and have clear costed delivery plans to 2030.
Green Foundations
- Advance London
The Advance London programme managed by the London Waste and Recycling Board (LWARB) has supported over 200 SMEs over the last 3.5 years to transition to circular business models and scale their circular economy ventures, resulting in a combined turnover of £50m.
Additional funding will broaden the existing Advance London programme by supporting start-ups and SMEs to launch and pilot circular economy ventures that will protect jobs and enable good quality businesses to be part of a green recovery. It will prioritise support to businesses in either geographic areas or sectors impacted most severely by the pandemic.
- Better Futures
Tailored support to SMEs to improve the success rate and speed of low-carbon enterprises supporting London’s transition. By expanding the existing Better Futures programme, funding will provide additional and enhanced, tailored business and technical development, with a proactive focus on under-represented groups in the Cleantech sector whilst supporting internships to access the sector.
New programmes also launched
Local Energy Accelerator
A brand new £6m programme to provide expertise and support organisations to develop clean and locally generated energy projects. These projects will include district energy networks that use renewable heat sources (including river water and waste heat from London Underground), and energy technologies such as heat pumps, solar panels, batteries and smart electric vehicle charging to transform the way London generates, supplies and uses clean local energy in buildings and transport.
Retrofit Accelerator - Innovation Partnership
Social landlords are committed to decarbonising their housing stock, but current approaches to procuring deep retrofit works are cumbersome, expensive and to date have not driven the expansion of the market required to meet London’s climate change targets.
To address this, the Mayor’s Retrofit Accelerator – Homes programme has developed an ‘Innovation Partnership’ model. This new procurement approach brings together social landlords and the supply chain together in order to develop scalable solutions that accelerate the pace of deep, whole-house retrofit while driving down costs and growing jobs in the supply chain.
Grow Back Greener Fund
COVID-19 has shone a spotlight on the importance of accessible green space for Londoners’ health and wellbeing, but it has also highlighted that not everyone has easy access to green spaces. To help address this the Mayor has provide an additional £650,000 to support greening projects through his Grow Back Greener fund, on top of the £1.1 million he allocated at the beginning of this year to green urban areas, including those with limited access to green space. Charities and community groups affected by the crisis were able to apply for funding, helping them retain jobs and support people to develop their skills, while delivering new greening projects in areas of need. Successful projects will be announced in the coming weeks.
London’s climate achievements so far under Sadiq Khan
· London was amongst the first three cities in the world (alongside New York and Paris) to develop a climate plan which is compatible with the highest ambition of Paris Agreement.
· London is the first major world city to deliver a multi-million pound Green New Deal package. This will be put towards projects that tackle the climate and ecological emergencies and eradicate air pollution whilst doubling the size of the green economy and creating jobs and skills for all Londoners.
· London is one of only 30 of the world’s cities recognised by C40 as having peaked greenhouse gas emissions: 33% below 1990 levels and we’re on track to meet London’s carbon budget from 2018-2022.
· Together with TfL, the Mayor recently announced plans to explore how to run the tube – London’s single largest consumer of electricity - on renewable energy through Power Purchase Agreements (PPA).
· The Mayor’s pioneering zero-carbon homes standard has applied to all new major residential developments since 2016 and will be rolled out to non-residential developments in the London Plan. London Plan energy policies have already seen developers committing carbon reductions of 40% beyond national Building Regs.
· The Mayor has taken action through divestment from fossil fuels and increasing green investment. This has included taking action on GLA cash assets and working with the LPFA, as well as calling on London boroughs to take action. Through the global initiative the Mayor set up with New York, in September a further 10 cities committed to following London’s lead
· Recent air quality and climate awards include:
- C40 Cities Bloomberg Philanthropies Award for the Ultra Low Emission Zone
- UK’s first National Winner in WWF’s One Planet City Challenge for climate action
- Carbon Disclosure Project (CPD) awarded London an A grade for the third year running
- EVIE (Electric Vehicle Innovation & Excellence Award) for Public Transport Authority of the Year, in recognition of the progress made on supporting electric vehicles in the capital.
*London’s low carbon and environmental goods and services sector
London’s low carbon and environmental goods and services sector (its ‘green economy’, was worth £48 billion in 2019/20, employing 317,000 people across 14,000 businesses. The sector has grown from £24 billion in 2010/11, employing 164,000 and 9,000 companies. https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/london-low-carbon-market-snapshot-2020
**BEIS Fuel Poverty Statistics 2018: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fuel-poverty-statistics