Latest Publications

With high energy prices remaining this winter there is still a strong case for providing energy bill support. This briefing looks at the potential for reforming the Warm Homes Discount to provide more targeted and generous support to help struggling households afford energy bills.

Despite the government’s target to reach net zero emissions by 2050, the UK’s heat pump supply chain is still in its infancy and remains much weaker than in mainland Europe or Asia. This report explores the economic and environmental benefits of making the UK’s heat pump supply chain more robust and provides recommendations for how to turn this opportunity into a reality.

The success of the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has triggered significant changes in international trade and manufacturing, as other OECD governments have sought to imitate its approach. This briefing surveys international responses to the IRA to identify how the can UK take advantage of the opportunities in this new economic regime.

Up to 900,000 UK families living in heat networks (i.e. receiving energy from a source shared with other buildings) risk facing staggering increases to their energy bills, by 700% in some cases. Beyond the immediate crisis, there are long-standing issues with heat networks. In this briefing, Will Damazer sets out an ambitious plan to overhaul the heat network system and secure a fairer deal for all those living in them.

The current system of policies supporting households with high energy bills is inadequate for an era of high energy bills. In this final, report with Public First, we present a new policy framework that should be in place by spring 2024 – to ensure warmer homes, fairer use of public money, and overall cheaper bills. It is part of a wider project commissioned and supported by Citizens Advice.

A key part of shifting to cleaner road transport will require replacing 32 million high-carbon vehicles with alternatives like electric vehicles. This report explores the key challenges is upskilling the industry to repair and maintain EVs, presents suggestions for what policymakers can do to support those in vehicle service, maintenance, and repair.

Energy bills are expected to remain high for several more years, and are a reminder that we do not have durable and considered bill policies at a UK level. In this joint interim report with Public First, we set out a series of choices and challenges around the future of energy bill policy. It is part of a wider project commissioned and supported by Citizens Advice.

British livestock farming has long suffered from low productivity. The post-Brexit era presents an opportunity to promote more productivity-enhancing schemes and clearer policy direction. This report looks to understand the benefits to farmers of using technologies such as precision farming, and how barriers to greater adoption might be overcome.

As we transition towards electric vehicles that don’t incur fuel duty, the Treasury faces a revenue loss of £30bn each year. Given the unpopularity of fuel duty, this report explores the case for introducing a nationwide road pricing system in the UK – setting out a model that is fairer than fuel duty, replaces lost tax revenue, and reduces the burden on low-income households.