New solar power installations in the UK have halved for the second consecutive year as a result of the government’s decision to cut green subsidies in a move to protect consumers from increasing energy bills.
Europe’s solar trade body, SolarPowerEurope, said Britain had the slowest growth of the world’s top 20 solar markets and the lowest chances of growth across Europe in the coming years.
In 2015, solar capacity was at 4.1GW falling to 1.97GW in 2016 and 0.95GW last year.
The UK government cut subsidies for households installing solar panels by 65% in 2015, during which time the then energy and climate secretary Amber Rudd said: “My priority is to ensure energy bills for hardworking families and businesses are kept as low as possible.”
Furthermore, documents from 2017’s Autumn Budget revealed the government would not introduce any new “green taxes” until 2025 to protect consumers from rising energy bills.