New minimum standards designed to ensure that only energy efficient household products are sold in the European market will help the UK save £150 million a year, the government has said.
Sustainability minister Lord Hunt of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the majority of these savings will come in the form of reduced household bills.
The standards, which for the first time apply minimum energy efficiency standards for products such as televisions, will also help to cut national carbon emissions by around two million tonnes a year, the minister added.
“I’m delighted that the European Union has joined together to save consumers money and help save significant amounts of energy and carbon dioxide emissions by introducing these minimum standards,” Lord Hunt commented.
However, the minister said it was “disappointing” that the A-G labelling system, which is already used for white goods, would not be extended under the new measures.
Instead, new ratings of A-20%, A-40% and A-60%, indicating that products are 20, 40 or 60 per cent more efficient than the current A standard, will be introduced from mid-2010.
Industry sources have already pointed out that this proposed new system is “confusing at best” and give no indication as to the quality or sustainability of the products.