The national programme to install smart meters in more than 25 million homes by the end of the decade officially gets underway today, with the government predicting the programme will "revolutionise" the energy market while helping to cut bills and greenhouse gas emissions.
Smart Energy GB – the organisation formerly known as the Smart Meter Central Delivery Body, which has been tasked with engaging the public with the national smart meter rollout – confirmed that its campaign will be fronted by Sir Bob Geldof, as well as two mascots "Gaz" and "Leccy".
Speaking ahead of the launch event in London, Baroness Margaret McDonagh, chair of Smart Energy GB, said the campaign had been developed following extensive research with energy consumers.
"We've spent many months listening to thousands of families around Great Britain tell us how they manage their household budgets," she said. "Over and over again we've heard how anxious people are about their gas and electricity bills. They don't know what they're spending from day to day, and they don't know how much their bill will be when it hits the mat – it's as if their energy is out of control. That's why we have chosen the mischievous characters of Gaz and Leccy to bring to life the frustration many people feel about the way we all buy and use gas and electricity."
Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey said the £11bn programme to install smart meters in homes and commercial properties across the UK would deliver a raft of benefits to both consumers and the wider economy.
"Smart meters put power into the hands of consumers, bringing an end to estimated billing and helping people understand their energy use," he said. "The nationwide rollout is part of the Government's complete overhaul of the UK's energy infrastructure, which will revolutionise the market. It will help reduce consumer bills, enable faster and easier switching, and give households control at the touch of a button."
Advocates of smart meters have long argued that they will provide people with more accurate billing information, encourage them to curb their energy use, and help enable the next generation of smart grid technologies that automatically save energy and better match supply and demand peaks and troughs.
However, Smart Energy GB faces a number of significant challenges, not least in the form of mounting criticism of the rollout's cost and questions about its efficacy.
A recent National Audit Office report argued that a year-long delay to the start of the smart meter rollout meant that the expected economic benefits would be around £2bn less than originally envisaged, while concerns have also been raised over whether the public will embrace the technology.
The Mail on Sunday this weekend attacked the "great expense" of the new publicity campaign and argued that the plans were a "classic example" of "green fashion", which will push up costs for consumers and will not deliver the promised savings.
However, with recent figures suggesting nearly 350,000 homes and around half a million commercial properties are already taking advantage of smart meters – and projects around the world demonstrating that they can prove effective at cutting emissions and bills – ministers remain confident the new technology will command significant public support.
