The UK Green Building Council (UK-GBC) today welcomed the launch of the 'Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy: Government and business working together' publication the Government's outline of what the transition to a green economy means for businesses. The document outlines the policies and processes that are being put in place by Government to support the transition to a green economy, and also what business needs to do to play its role in the transition and be well placed to capitalize on the new opportunities for growth and job creation.
UK-GBC particularly welcomes the Government's statement that 'A green economy is not a sub-set of the economy at large our whole economy needs to be green', and their commitment to create a clear, stable and effective policy framework that will encourage green investment.
Dan Labbad, Chief Executive Officer-EMEA of Lend Lease and Chairman of UK-GBC commented: "Industry needs certainty on Government policy in order to invest and gear up for a low carbon future. The publication of 'Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy: Government and business working together' has the potential to provide that certainty and I welcome its publication. However, this is just the start of a long journey. Government and business need to work in partnership to ensure that each sector has absolute clarity on what is expected of it and that we have the right set of policies that enable industry to deliver. This is particularly true of the construction and property sector, where there is significant potential for cost-effective carbon reductions."
Paul King, CEO of UK-GBC commented: "The rationale behind the 'Enabling the Transition to a Green Economy: Government and business working together' document is sound and something UK-GBC has called for since its inception. All sectors must contribute to the development of a green economy, but arguably none more so than the built environment which offers almost twice the cost-effective carbon mitigation potential of any other sector, and the potential to create places for people to live and work in a more sustainable way. As highlighted by the Low Carbon Construction IGT, the task of building a low carbon future represents a 40 year business plan worth hundreds of billions of pounds and capable of creating hundreds of thousands of jobs. That is why UK-GBC is working with industry leaders to develop a business plan to show how we could reduce carbon emissions from the UK's built environment by 50% in a decade, while generating benefits for business and society as a whole.
"Industry must step up to the plate, but Government has a critical role in signposting the future direction of policy and providing as much clarity and certainty as possible, to allow businesses to invest and innovate. There has to be a real commitment for Government and industry to work effectively together, and the recently announced Green Construction Board will help to provide a platform for joint decision-making and direction-setting for the built environment sector, in the broader context of the overall transition plan outlined today."
Source: UKGBC
