Tax wealthiest 1% to fund home insulation, say Greens

The Green Party is calling for a new tax on the wealthiest 1% to fund investment in renewable energy and home insulation.

At its annual conference in Harrogate, the party's co-leaders will say the levy could raise £70bn to help reduce energy costs and emissions.

They will argue better insulated homes could save households hundreds or thousands of pounds per year.

And they will call for windfall taxes on oil and gas firms to be extended.

The party has long advocated higher taxation for the very richest as a way to reduce inequality and fund the transition to cleaner energy.

In a conference speech, Green Party of England and Wales co-leader Carla Denyer will say better insulation would "bring bills down for good".

"We've got the leakiest homes in Europe - losing huge amounts of energy through badly sealed windows and poorly lined walls," she will say.

"It really isn't rocket science. The cheapest bill is the one you don't have to pay."

Under the party's latest proposals, its wealth tax would begin at 1% for households with total assets worth £3.4 million or above.

This would then rise to 5% for those with assets worth more than £5.7 million, and to 10% for those with £18.2 million and above.

The party has also estimated a further £3bn a year could be raised by extending the windfall tax on the profits of oil and gas companies.

The government's levy covers profits posted after 26 May, when the policy was announced, but the Greens say it should be backdated to January instead.

The party has also said the UK's big five energy suppliers should be nationalised to pay for prices to be fixed at October 2021 levels.

Speaking at the conference, co-leader Adrian Ramsay will say oil and gas companies are "flourishing" while "families struggle to pay their bills".

He will add that money and powers are currently in "all the wrong places" and accuse Prime Minister Liz Truss of "doing everything she can to maintain that status quo".

The three-day gathering in Harrogate is the first since May's local elections, which saw the Greens gain over 60 seats, more than doubling the party's representation on councils that had elections.

In an interview with the Guardian, Mr Ramsay said his party wanted to continue to stress the link between social justice and energy issues as part of its pitch to voters.

He added that the cost of living had been "driven mainly by energy" and the "need for Green ideas has never been greater".