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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Jillian Ambrose

In the race for new energy strategies, why does home insulation always lag behind?

Britain GB Energy Ember United Kingdom
A man preparing to insulate a loft in a home.
The number of energy efficiency installations in the UK, such as insulating lofts, fell from 2.3m in 2012 to 100,000 in 2021. Photograph: Monty Rakusen/Getty Images

In the battle for Downing Street, only the most eyecatching political policies are given a chance to shine, and insulating Britain’s draughty homes seldom makes the grade.

It would be a challenge for any policy commentator to find a ­subject with less political star power than the polystyrene, wood fibre and foam that makes up the home insulation so desperately needed across the UK.

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