Tag Archives: solar power

6 June 2025 – today’s press releases

  • Lib Dems celebrate Sunshine Bill victory
  • Chamberlain supports constituent’s pancreatic cancer petition
  • David Chadwick MP challenges Lloyds CEO over bank closures

Lib Dems celebrate Sunshine Bill victory

  • Liberal Democrat win as Government accept Max Wilkinson’s campaign for renewable energy technology to be mandated for new homes
  • Mandated solar included in the Government’s Future Homes Standard

Max Wilkinson MP is celebrating victory in his campaign for solar energy generation technology to be included in all new homes as standard.

Following his Private Member’s Bill earlier this year – known as the Sunshine Bill – the Government today announced that all new homes will now include renewable energy generation technology as standard.

Max called for the law change shortly after becoming an MP last July, which means he will have successfully campaigned to change the law within one year of being elected.

His Sunshine Bill was debated in the House of Commons in January and received widespread support from industry figures, the public and MPs from all parties.

As a result of his campaign and negotiations with Ministers, Max secured commitments from the government that they would incorporate the measures set out in the Sunshine Bill into the updated Future Homes Standard.

Next week, the Liberal Democrats will be pushing for a vote in Parliament to ensure all new car parks are built with solar panels, with an amendment (NC7) to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Commenting Max Wilkinson, MP for Cheltenham, said:

This news will help us fight the cost-of-living crisis by lowering people’s energy bills while reducing carbon emissions too.

Mandatory solar and renewable energy generation for new build homes means the next generation of homes will be better for the planet and less expensive to run.

I’ve been campaigning on this since long before I was an MP and was determined to build on its success after I was elected.

I welcome today’s news from the Government and I’m pleased we can all look forward to a brighter future – but there will be more work to do to ensure solar for new builds begins without delay.

Chamberlain supports constituent’s pancreatic cancer petition

Wendy Chamberlain, MP for North East Fife, has joined constituents to deliver a petition to Downing Street urging the government to fund vital research into pancreatic cancer early detection.

Wendy Chamberlain MP joined Isla Gear and her nephew Max and Alfie Bailey-Bearfield, head of Campaigns, Health Improvement, and Policy at Pancreatic Cancer UK at 10 Downing Street to present their petition, which has now garnered over 200,000 signatures online, as well as an open letter from Pancreatic Cancer UK which has almost 71,000 signatures. The letter urges the Government to invest in rolling out new tests to detect pancreatic cancer earlier. Chamberlain later presented a version of the petition in the House of Commons.

Posted in News, Press releases, Scotland and Wales | Also tagged , , , and | 1 Comment

Ed Davey MP writes… Solar power for the many, not the few

Some things in politics are symbolic. For dyed-in-the-wool environmentalists like the Liberal Democrats, solar power is one of these things – indisputably clean, green and cutting edge technology. The sort of thing Liberal Democrats in a government that aims to be the greenest ever should be unequivocally behind.

Our commitment to the environment was why I joined the party in the first place.

So I understand why many of you were confused and disappointed when the Government appeared to scale back the Feed in Tariffs that allow people to install solar panels in their homes and businesses, not least when our decision …

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged , and | 28 Comments
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Recent Comments

  • David Allen
    @cim Yes, we're both struggling to get beyond the waffle, to "do a single thing which will improve anyone’s life", rather than just theorising about "proce...
  • Caracatus
    All the focus groups highlight town centre regeneration as a key issue, the lib dems have a great policy and for 8 years, they have kept it a secret so not eve...
  • Mick Taylor
    Actually what is really needed is fearless politicians, unafraid to make difficult decisions. What we have seen over many years is vacillation and u-turns. In t...
  • Jonathan Parry
    Good article, Roz. I hope that in your essay you will flesh out what you mean by 'communities'. It's a neat word for Lib Dems to use, but part of the party's ...
  • cim
    @David Allen I think the key - for electoral communications, at least - is to skip the description of the process entirely and go straight to the outcome. Yo...