30th September 2007

As a result of heavy lobbying by Oxfordshire Green Party of energy company Powergen, community associations across the UK will be now able to buy highly subsidised low-energy lightbulbs. Up until now, community groups were banned from selling the bulbs.

The first groups to benefit will be Oxford-based groups 'Low Carbon Wolvercote' and the 'Canalside Environment Group'.

Chris Goodall, award-winning environmental writer and Green Party parliamentary candidate for Oxford West and Abingdon, who founded and led the campaign explains:

‘I was amazed to find that major supermarkets buy energy efficient lightbulbs with a huge subsidy but that community associations were banned from selling the bulbs. Local groups are springing up all around the country to help foster low-energy living and they need access to the cheap lightbulbs. Lighting is responsible for a significant proportion of damaging carbon dioxide emissions and switching to low energy bulbs can make a real difference.

I challenged Powergen to explain why they would not sell Oxford groups on the same terms as Tesco. Eventually they agreed to allow Low Carbon Wolvercote and the Canalside Environment Group to sell the cheap bulbs. This is a trial prior to the scheme being extended to all community groups across the UK.

I am delighted to say that at the St Margaret’s Church Green Living day on Saturday we sold 100 bulbs in the space of a few hours. People paid £1 or £2 for high quality branded bulbs. When people are switching to low-energy lights they really appreciate getting access to a cheap source.

Oxfordshire Greens believe in empowering local groups to take action themselves on global warming. That’s why we put in so much effort to persuade Powergen to give our community associations access to cheap bulbs.’

Note to Editors

1, All UK electricity companies are obliged to spend a certain percentage of their turnover on energy efficiency.

2, Powergen choose to devote a substantial fraction of their obligation to subsidizing low energy lightbulbs. Each lightbulb is subsidized by about £4.

3, Until Chris Goodall’s intervention, Powergen refused to supply community groups and insisted on selling to shops.

4, Powergen have now agreed to sell bulbs to community bodies in North Oxford and has made a formal request to energy regulator Ofgem to change the terms of their scheme to include groups without retail premises. This permission is expected within a few weeks from which time Powergen will allow community groups around the UK to buy the highly subsidized bulbs.

5, Chris Goodall’s book ‘How to Live a Low-carbon Life’ recently won the prestigious Clarion prize for non-fiction.


FMI
Chris Goodall
26 Navigation Way,
Oxford, OX2 6XW
01865 339967
07767 386696

c.goodall@which.net
http://www.lowcarbonlife.net