In mid-July, the Chamber of Deputies adopted the important “Klimabonus Wunnen” bill. This legislation sets out key financial support measures in the field of energy.
The current heatwaves clearly demonstrate how important such legislation and the accompanying financial resources are. They also highlight the urgent need for a far more coherent climate protection and climate adaptation policy, particularly for people with limited financial means, who are especially vulnerable to the impacts of extreme heat.
In his State of the Nation address, the Prime Minister asked: “Do we want to enjoy the sun in summer, or endure it as a heatwave?” He answered: “For the Government, the answer is clear: we want to protect the environment and tackle climate change.”
However, the facts paint a different picture. An analysis carried out by the Öko-Institut on behalf of the Mouvement Ecologique, with financial support from the Ministry of the Environment, shows that:
- The existing support schemes for renewable energy, heat pumps and similar measures are sound in principle, but they still leave far too many low-income households behind. The study sets out concrete proposals for improvement. The bill adopted today also contains numerous shortcomings, for example with regard to multi-family residential buildings.
- More generally, Luxembourg’s support schemes lack a targeted, evidence-based approach. As a result, the country is unlikely to achieve the climate objectives that are needed, while public funds are not being used as effectively as they could be.
- Luxembourg is significantly off track in meeting its climate targets. Our press release presents the relevant figures.
- Finally, talking about air conditioning alone is not enough. We need to fundamentally rethink the way our towns and villages are designed in order to adapt to rising temperatures.
Attached you will find the Mouvement Ecologique’s position paper, which includes a summary of the main findings of the Öko-Institut study. The full study provides a more detailed and comprehensive analysis of these issues.
