The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is calling upon the Government to ‘urgently’ unveil a new carbon plan geared at helping Britain’s small firms to ‘close the carbon gap’.
The calls come after an FSB report, entitled The Price of Power: Energising small business in the next UK Carbon Plan, found that the UK may have a fairer chance of achieving its carbon targets and becoming more self-sufficient with supplies if the Government introduced a series of new incentives to make it simpler, more attractive and more sustainable for small firms to generate their own green energy.
According to the FSB’s study, 12 per cent of small businesses currently generate their own green energy – but ‘much more needs to be done’ to encourage the remaining 88 per cent to follow suit.
The FSB believes that the Government’s revised plans should promote microgeneration, and completely re-review the effectiveness of subsidies. Their report adds that security of supply is currently the biggest energy concern for most small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with 60 per cent experiencing difficulties in this area.
A further 86 per cent of businesses quizzed said that they believe that the UK is ‘too reliant’ on imported energy.
FSB National Chairman Mike Cherry said: “Our research shows small firms want energy security to be a priority. Brexit raises yet more questions about the UK’s future power supply. Infrastructure costs must be shared out equitably with small firms playing a pivotal role in securing Britain’s energy future.
“The UK energy sector is facing the greatest transformation since the Industrial Revolution. But the whole system for incentivising and subsidising infrastructure lacks transparency, consistency, direction and ambition.
“It needs a strategic overhaul”.
He added: “The Government should produce urgently an updated carbon plan, looking specifically at small businesses as an audience”.
Comments