UK Conference Season: Homes, Nuclear and Drilling Split Explained
Kemi Badenoch put scrapping the Future Homes Standard at the centre of her bid to become prime minister at the Conservative Party conference in October 2026. The Guardian
The Standard supports the installation of solar panels on new homes in England. Badenoch gave her conference speech on 5 October 2026 and framed repeal as a housing affordability measure. In that debate, the Conservatives quoted a £30,000 estimate for new-build houses. The Guardian
That £30,000 figure is contested. A 2024 estimate puts the cost of installing heat pumps, solar panels, batteries and insulation during construction at about £5,000 to £8,000. Heat pumps are electric heating systems, and retrofit means adding features after a home is finished. Low-carbon homes built this way can save more than £1,300 per year on bills, while retrofit later costs more than £20,000. It is cheaper to build it in from the start than to fix it afterwards, much like plumbing.
The UK needs approximately 6 million new homes. Simon McWhirter, chief executive of the UK Green Building Council, and Jan Rosenow, professor of climate and energy policy at the University of Oxford, were both cited in the post-conference assessment published on 11 October 2026. Green co-leader Adrian Ramsay said the Tory plan to cut energy efficiency rules for builders will cost new homeowners £1,000 a year.
Conservatives: cost, regulators and inheritance
The Conservatives pledged measures they claimed would cut the price of a new home by £50,000, including by scrapping net-zero regulations. Net-zero here means the wider set of climate rules for building. The pledge was briefed ahead of the speech and repeated during conference week.
Badenoch announced at the October 2026 conference that the Conservatives would abolish inheritance tax on the family home. The proposal would allow couples to leave an extra £1m.
The party under Badenoch would also abolish the Environment Agency and Natural England. No detailed replacement structure was set out in the verified conference material.
The broader context for this Conservative position is that housing delivery and regulatory cost are now paired directly with climate rules.
Greens: nuclear reversal and water
The Greens back new nuclear reactors. Members voted to end the party's opposition to nuclear power and dropped its commitment to phase out nuclear power. They voted to include nuclear among low-carbon forms of energy. The Guardian
The Green Party would nationalise Thames Water and South East Water without paying compensation, according to the party's deputy leader. The commitment was reported during the Green conference on 3 October 2026. It applies to two specific English water utilities. It does not describe a wider water nationalisation programme.
Labour: drilling paused
Labour put oil-drilling decisions on hold. Andy Burnham's government has signalled openness to allowing new oil and gas drilling under existing licences in the North Sea. Burnham faces a decision about whether to approve new oil drilling in the North Sea. The BBC reported it had been told Burnham will announce plans for new North Sea oil and gas drilling after he becomes prime minister.
Britain set a target to cut emissions by around 87% by 2040 from 1990 levels. Britain issued tougher new environmental rules for fossil fuel projects in North Sea oil and gas fields. BP put its UK North Sea oil and gas assets up for sale. Operating costs in the UK North Sea were expected to average $25.20 per barrel of oil equivalent in 2026, according to Rystad estimates. French utility EDF allocated 240 million euros ($280 million) to help customers invest in heat pumps and electrification.
The broader context here is a three-way divergence on how decarbonisation costs are allocated. The Conservative argument prices the Future Homes Standard as an upfront burden on supply. Industry and academic estimates price in-build compliance far lower and emphasise lifetime bill savings and avoided retrofit.
Looking at what this means for investment signals, the next tests are concrete. Whether the £30,000 figure survives scrutiny in technical consultation matters more than conference rhetoric. Whether Labour defines the conditions for drilling under existing licences, and under the tougher environmental guidance, will shape North Sea capital allocation. Whether Green support for nuclear translates into positions on siting, financing and waste will determine its weight in low-carbon capacity planning.
