As part of the UK’s wider efforts to tackle climate change, the government today has announced plans to end the sale of halogen light bulbs from this September,
The legislation will go before Parliament in the coming weeks and will also include the removal of fluorescent lights from shelves from September 2023.
Currently, around 2 thirds of lightbulbs sold in Britain are LED lights, making a considerable impact in improving the energy efficiency of the country’s buildings. They last 5 times longer than traditional halogen lightbulbs and produce the same amount of light – but use up to 80% less power.
The UK began phasing out the sale of higher-energy halogen lightbulbs in 2018. The new legislation would mean retailers will no longer be able to sell the majority of halogen bulbs for general household use in the UK from 1 September.
To help people make the switch, ministers are also announcing that all light bulbs will start to feature new energy efficiency advice via ‘rescaled’ energy labels on their boxes. The labels will simplify the way energy efficiency is displayed on a new scale from A-G, doing away with the A+, A++ or A+++ ratings. The new labels will raise the bar for each class, meaning very few bulbs will now be classified as A, helping consumers choose the most environmentally friendly bulbs.
This measure is expected to mean that LED light bulbs will account for 85% of all bulbs sold by 2030.
In addition, the government also plans to start phasing out the sale of high-energy fluorescent lightbulbs, with a view to bringing an end to their sale from September 2023.
Taken together, these new rules will mark a significant shift to more energy efficient and longer lasting LEDs and will stop 1.26 million tonnes of carbon being emitted every year - the equivalent of removing over half a million cars from the UK’s roads.
Today’s plans also include a ban from September on the sale of lighting fixtures with fixed bulbs that can’t be replaced – meaning the fixtures have to be thrown away. Fixtures such as these account for 100,000 tonnes of electrical waste every year – out of a total 1.5 million tonnes of electrical waste each year.
You can read the government's full press release on the BEIS website
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/end-of-halogen-light-bulbs-spells-brighter-and-cleaner-future