Big names call on government to adopt RetroFirst reforms

A letter to the Times newspaper, published on Saturday, said the government ‘cannot ignore our wasteful addiction to demolition and rebuilding’, particularly amid preparations for the UK to host the COP26 climate summit later this year.

The letter was signed by 35 individuals including Doreen Lawrence, Norman Foster, David Chipperfield, Thomas Heatherwick, Amin Taha, Sadie Morgan and former environment secretary John Gummer.

The letter said adopting the three recommendations of the RetroFirst campaign – cutting VAT on refurbishment to 5 per cent or less; amending planning guidance and the Building Regs to promote reuse of existing buildings; and insisting all publicly funded projects look to retrofit solutions first – ‘would not only underline the UK’s leadership at COP26 but would put a rocket under the drive to upgrade the energy efficiency of homes, schools and hospitals.’

Other signatories included broadcasters Kevin McCloud and George Clarke, architects Sarah Wigglesworth and Asif Khan, British land chief executive Simon Carter, Nicholas Boys Smith and the AJ’s Emily Booth and Will Hurst.

A government spokesperson said: 'We are committed to leaving the environment in a better condition than we found it, and as part of the Summer Economic Statement, we committed £3 billion to support the retrofit of homes, schools and hospitals.

'Our Energy White Paper and the Prime Minister's 10 Point Plan for a green industrial revolution set out our ambitious goals and the concrete steps we will take to build back greener from the pandemic and reach net zero emissions by 2050. This will include comprehensive action to drive down emissions from buildings.'

Yes! @thetimes today features letter of support for @ArchitectsJrnal #RetroFirst campaign signed by likes of Doreen Lawrence, David Chipperfield, @Kevin_McCloud, Norman Foster, @loydgrossman, Sadie Morgan, @VictoriaRTPI, Thomas Heatherwick, @MFarmer_Resi & @MrGeorgeClarke ♻️♻️♻️ pic.twitter.com/zIK8Jnp2Un

— Will Hurst (@WHurst1) January 16, 2021

Letter in full

BUILDING EMISSIONS
Sir, The commitment shown by ministers to making the forthcoming COP26 conference a success is to be commended (“Business secretary quits to focus on UN climate conference”, Jan 9). However, since the construction sector is responsible for about 45 per cent of UK carbon emissions, the government cannot ignore our wasteful addiction to demolition and rebuilding. We lose more than 50,000 buildings a year by demolition, and construction is far more carbon-intensive than refurbishment. According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, more than half of the lifetime carbon emissions of a typical residential block will have been emitted by completion.

Before COP26 the government should introduce reforms to underpin a new circular economy approach to net-zero construction as set out in the RetroFirst campaign by The Architects’ Journal. It recommends that the government cut VAT on refurbishment to 5 per cent or less, amend planning guidance and the building rules to promote reuse of existing buildings to high standards, and insist that all publicly funded projects look to retrofit solutions first.

This would not only underline the UK’s leadership at COP26 but would put a rocket under the drive to upgrade the energy efficiency of homes, schools and hospitals.

Sadie Morgan, founding director, dRMM Architects; Lord Foster of Thames Bank, founder, Foster + Partners; Baroness Lawrence, founder, Stephen Lawrence Day Foundation; Simon Carter, chief executive, British Land; Nicholas Boys Smith, director, Create Streets; Hanif Kara, design director, AKT II; Thomas Heatherwick, founder, Heatherwick Studio; Lord Deben, former environment secretary; Sir David Chipperfield, principal, David Chipperfield Architects; Dame Polly Courtice, founder director, University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership; Kevin McCloud, broadcaster; Will Hurst, managing editor, The Architects’ Journal; Emily Booth, editor, The Architects’ Journal; Femi Oresanya, honorary professor, Bartlett School of Architecture; Victoria Hills, chief executive, Royal Town Planning Institute; Amin Taha, chairman, Groupwork; Stephen Hodder, chairman, Construction Industry Council; Steve Tompkins, director, Haworth Tompkins; Julie Hirigoyen, chief executive, UK Green Building Council; Mark Farmer, independent champion for modern methods of construction in housebuilding and chief executive, Cast Consultancy; Sarah Wigglesworth, director, Sarah Wigglesworth Architects; George Clarke, architect and broadcaster; Alan Jones, president, Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba); Tor Burrows, executive director for sustainability & innovation, Grosvenor Britain & Ireland; Lesley Lokko, architect; Chris Wise, senior director, Expedition Engineering; Loyd Grossman, author and broadcaster; Julia Barfield, founding director, Marks Barfield Architects; Ian Ritchie, founder, Ian Ritchie Architects; Mark Tillett, founding director, Heyne Tillett Steel; Maria Smith, Riba councillor and Mayor of London’s design advocate; Christina Gaiger, president, Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland; Matt Howell, UK & Ireland managing director, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors; Asif Khan, founder director, Asif Khan Ltd; Gary Clark, chairman, RIBA sustainable futures group.

Find out more about the AJ's RetroFirst campaign here