One of the key issues of this year's General Election is the environment – but what does the manifesto policies mean for south east London?

Climate change is the fifth-most important issue, according to YouGov research, and is likely to be a major voting factor on July 4.

The major parties all have plans for the environment in their manifestos.

While these include some similarities, such as a form of windfall tax on oil and gas companies until 2029, the phasing out of carbonized electricity, and ramping up electric car sales, there are also differences regarding gas central heating and renewable energy sources, such as onshore wind.

Here is a breakdown of key environmental issues raised by the parties and some of the current figures in the boroughs.

Electric Vehicles

Labour said it will "support the transition to electric vehicles" and reinstate the ban on selling new petrol and diesel cars from 2030. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak previously pushed the ban back to 2035.

The Reform Party said it would eradicate the ban entirely, while the Green Party said new sales should be banned by 2027, with petrol and diesel cars removed from the UK's roads entirely by 2035.

  • Bromley: 6,609 electric vehicles registered by the end of 2023, up from 1,277 in 2019. 149 public chargers, 51 high-speed.
  • Bexley: 3,952 electric vehicles registered by the end of 2023, up from 755 in 2019. 122 public chargers, 34 high-speed.
  • Greenwich: 3,226 electric vehicles registered by the end of 2023, up from 720 in 2019. 232 public chargers, 57 high-speed.
  • Lewisham: 2,812 electric vehicles registered by the end of 2023, up from 630 in 2019. 223 public chargers, 35 high-speed.

Nationally, the number of licensed electric vehicles has rocketed from 265,000 in 2019 to 1.6 million last year.

Gas Boilers and Heat Pumps

Labour's manifesto stated "nobody will be forced to rip out their (gas) boiler" after the Tories watered down their ban on gas central heating, aiming only for an 80 per cent phase-out by 2035 instead. Shadow energy secretary Ed Miliband emphasized the need to make heat pumps affordable and effective for people.

  • Bromley: 190 households had a heat pump installed as of June.
  • Bexley: 70 households had a heat pump installed as of June.
  • Greenwich: 91 households had a heat pump installed as of June.
  • Lewisham: 148 households had a heat pump installed as of June.

The take-up on heat pumps remains slow across the UK, with fewer than 40,000 households installing one last year, though this is on course for close to 50,000 this year. Set-up costs for heat pumps are between £10,000 and £12,000, compared to just £2,000 or £3,000 for a new gas boiler.

Census figures show that 74 per cent of households across England and Wales had gas central heating:

  • Bromley: 82 per cent
  • Bexley: 79 per cent
  • Greenwich: 66 per cent
  • Lewisham: 71 per cent

Meanwhile, just 0.5 per cent of households in Bromley, Bexley, and Lewisham, and 0.7 per cent in Greenwich, used any form of renewable energy.

Renewable Energy

Labour aims to decarbonize the UK's electricity supply by 2030, bringing forward the Conservatives' target by five years. This includes removing an onshore wind ban by scrapping the requirement of local support for proposed turbines.

  • Bromley: No onshore wind energy generated. Solar power generated 7,965 megawatt-hours.
  • Bexley: Negligible onshore wind energy generated. Solar power generated 8,226 megawatt-hours.
  • Greenwich: Onshore wind generated 39 megawatt-hours. Solar power generated 7,778 megawatt-hours.
  • Lewisham: No onshore wind energy generated. Solar power generated 5,503 megawatt-hours.

Nationally, renewable energy sources accounted for 47 per cent of the country's electricity supply last year, up from 37 per cent in 2019.