The study says more investment is needed to meet climate change targets
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Cutting climate change pollution from Scottish homes could create or secure 10,000 jobs, a study has suggested. The Association for the Conservation of Energy also found that meeting Scottish government targets would provide a £4bn boost for the economy. Ministers want to reduce pollution from Scottish homes by 42% by 2020. The report says that would require 1.5m energy efficient boilers, 1.8m solar panels, 2.2m draft proofing strips and 1.5m insulation packages. The combined cost of such measures would be about £13.4bn in addition to current investment plans, it estimated. But this would boost the economy by £4bn and create or safeguard 10,200 jobs over the 10 years to 2020.
Report co-author Chas Booth said: "This report shows the massive economic boost that could come from investing in energy saving homes. "Not only could we have warm homes without a warming planet, we could create green-collar jobs and boost the low-carbon economy at the same time. "Clearly, investing in energy saving for our homes is a win-win-win-win for Scotland. But it can't be achieved at current levels of investment: we need a step-change in spending plans if this economic boost is to be realised." The research was commissioned by eaga, the UK's largest residential energy efficiency provider. Simon Kemp, from eaga Scotland, said: "This is hugely encouraging as we can now quantify the fantastic potential impact the Climate Change Act could have on the Scottish economy." Duncan McLaren, Friends of the Earth Scotland chief executive, called the report an important step forward. He said: "Policy makers should take careful note, and respond accordingly. "In our view the right response would be a step change increase in investment in home insulation and efficiency to at least £100m a year in ways designed both to leverage increased private investment and to help the fuel poor." He said green tax reform could create more than 450,000 jobs across the UK, many of them in Scotland.
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