Green Investment Bank must function like a “real bank”

The government’s quest to make the UK low-carbon won’t come cheap, and one of their upcoming projects is going to need to fund itself to survive.

The planned Green Investment Bank, which will fund clean energy and any low-carbon projects, must be a “real bank” and not just a fund for distributing government money, MP’s have urged.

The Environmental Audit Committee have found that there is a shortfall in funding for the Green Investment Bank, as it will cost between £200 billion and £1 trillion to make the UK truly low-carbon over the next few decades.

In comparison, £1 billion is being ploughed into the Green Investment Bank by the government, as announced by Chancellor George Osborne in the spending review last October. If the government don’t want the Green Investment Bank to be an expensive flop, then it needs to raise its own capital.

The purpose of the bank is to fund all low-carbon and clean energy projects and through private finance and investment, cut emissions and boost renewable energy through its projects.

The EAC’s chairwoman Joan Walley said in a statement:

“If the Government is serious about being “the greenest ever”, the Chancellor must ensure the Green Investment Bank can do what it says on the tin and raise extra capital like a real bank.

‘The UK desperately needs a game-changing injection of private sector investment if we are going to meet our climate change targets and move to a green economy.”

The Green Investment Bank is also part of the Renewable Heat Incentive, which was announced by the government last week in a bid to capitalise on all types of renewable energy.

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