Building Regulations
The 1965 Building Regulations introduced the first limits on the amount of energy that could be lost through certain elements of the fabric of new houses. This was expressed as a u-value—the amount of heat lost per square metre, for each degree Celsius of temperature difference between inside and outside.
In effect, the Target Insulation is a ratio of 1.33 W/m²·K of wall area (Document L 2006). So to keep your square metre warm, you are limited as to how much energy you can use. This is slightly regressive in that richer people live in bigger houses which tend to have a lower surface area/floor area, although this is partially offset by them being detached, as opposed to, say, terraced.
These limits were tightened following the 1973 oil crisis, and on several subsequent occasions (see below. Despite this, UK insulation levels have remained low compared to the EU average.
Read more about this topic: Energy Efficiency In British Housing
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