Fixing UK Housing Must Be A Priority As We Adapt To Our New Climate Reality, MP Warns

The River Great Ouse, which burst its banks through the centre of Bedford with water levels raised by over 1.3 meters in 2020.This month, Britons saw our first heat-health alert of the year—a yellow alert. One week later, we saw our second—this time, amber.For many, these soaring temperatures have dire consequences; health and social care providers overstretched by heat-related crises, transport networks affected, and increased risks of other weather events like wildfires.Our homes are often our first and last line of defence against weather extremes—but too many homes being built today are utterly inadequate in this regard.Last week’s heatwave should spark one urgent question: are we building and upgrading our homes to protect people from the extremes already upon us and those to come? The answer is painfully clear: we are not, and the consequences are mounting rapidly. The summer of 2022 taught us how dire the stakes are. For the first time, UK temperatures exceeded 40°C, contributing to over 3,000 heat-related deaths in England and more than 1,000 excess deaths among older people during the peak days. Making homes fit for the future must be a non-negotiable. The Met Office now warns that a 40°C day is more than 20 times likelier than in the 1960s and nearly three times as likely since 2000, with even higher extremes possible as the climate warms. These heatwaves, alongside deeper cold snaps and heavier rainfall, ice, and flooding events, are not curiosities but harbingers demanding that housing becomes the frontline of climate adaptation.Yet policy remains mired in reactive relief rather than proactive resilience. The government’s recent expansion of the Warm Home Discount to deliver a one-off rebate during winter offers short-term relief for fuel-poor households, but it won’t stop homes leaking heat or trapping excessive warmth in summer.Without tackling the root causes – poor insulation, inefficient and high-carbon heating and cooling systems, and unsafe siting – people will still be sitting in homes that are unfit to tackle the intensifying climate extremes.With the Climate Change Committee’s latest Progress Report due this week, the government has a pivotal opportunity to take action in the face of our changing climate. We need to do two things. One: ensure that housing helps stop climate breakdown, by making it much more energy efficient. And two: ensure housing is flood-resilient and protected from overheating, so that it’s adapted to the climate extremes that are already baked in.Making homes fit for the future must be a non-negotiable. For new-build developments, this means using low-waste, low-carbon construction methods to minimise embodied emissions, and insisting on ultra-high-performance insulation so that homes retain comfortable temperatures without excessive heating or cooling.It entails fitting efficient electric heat pumps and electric cooking appliances instead of gas connections, slashing operational emissions and future retrofit costs. Critically, developers should be required to monitor and publicly report on how homes perform in practice – tracking indoor temperatures and energy use and bill costs – to ensure design ambitions match lived reality.It means being considerate of the climate reality when siting new builds, avoiding flood plains or areas of escalating flood risk. Locating developments close to essential services, with strong public transport and active travel links, will reduce transport emissions and also enhances community resilience. Every pound invested in efficiency returns multiple times through avoided health costs, energy savings, and reduced disaster recovery spending. Equally urgent is a national retrofit revolution. Right now, millions of people live in leaky, inefficient homes vulnerable to overheating, cold snaps, and spiralling energy bills. We need to make all these homes genuinely fit for the future. By retrofitting existing homes with high-grade insulation, low-carbon heating systems and resilience measures like flood-proofing and passive cooling, people can stay in the homes they love. A large-scale retrofit fund could first prioritise those most at risk—older, low-income households in poorly insulated dwellings—while raising standards across all tenures.Delivering this transformation requires decisive government action. Planning policies must mandate zero carbon standards for new builds and retrofit benchmarks for existing stock. Supply chains need support through investment in training programmes for sustainable construction and retrofit expertise, ensuring sufficient capacity and quality workmanship. Incentives or low-cost finance should make low-carbon materials and technologies commercially viable, with clear technical guidance to mainstream best practice. Rigorous climate risk assessments must be enforced for all developments, rejecting or redesigning schemes in high-risk zones and embedding adaptation features where necessary. Transparent monitoring and reporting, with publicly accessible data, will hold industry and government accountable for actual performance against resilience and efficiency targets.The benefits of future-fit housing are clear. Well-insulated homes with efficient heating and cooling mean lower energy bills, easing cost-of-living pressures and reducing fuel poverty. Stable indoor temperatures protect health by averting heatstroke in summer and respiratory or cardiovascular impacts in winter, lightening the burden on our NHS and social care sectors. Low-carbon homes align with net zero commitments, reducing emissions and safeguarding the environment. Thoughtfully sited and designed dwellings shield occupants from floods and heatwaves, preserving property values and community stability. Every pound invested in efficiency returns multiple times through avoided health costs, energy savings, and reduced disaster recovery spending.The heatwave battering us yesterday, the storms and floods looming tomorrow—and the relentless rise in energy costs—demand bold action now. By mandating zero-carbon new builds and launching a retrofit revolution for existing homes, we can protect people from extremes, cut bills, and safeguard the planet. Let this moment be the catalyst: let’s invest in homes fit for the future now for healthier, more affordable, and resilient living for current and future generations. Ellie Chowns is running to be the Green Party’s next co-leader on a joint ticket with Adrian Ramsay.Related...Exclusive: Why The Green Party Could Be The Dark Horse In This Unpredictable Era For UK PoliticsRachel Reeves' Plan To Cut Welfare Spending Reveals Labour's Twisted Priorities, Green MP Says'Your Numbers Did Not Stack Up': Green MP Takes On Richard Tice Over Reform's Manifesto

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