Recommendations

a. note that Sustainable Energy: Creating a Sustainable Energy System, which was released for public discussion in October 2004, was generally well-received and few questioned its main thrust, although some thought it lacked a sense of urgency;

b. note that stakeholders expressed a general desire for the government to articulate a clearer strategy for achieving sustainable energy objectives;

c. confirm that the government's objectives for sustainable energy are to create an energy system that is reliable and resilient, environmentally responsible, and in which prices are fair and efficient;

d. agree that the government's general approach to sustainable energy has to be pitched at a level that balances the need for direction with the need for flexibility;

e. note that work is already underway to strengthen existing policy settings in specific areas, e.g. more active steps to promote energy efficiency and renewables are being addressed in the context of a review of the National Energy Efficiency Conservation Strategy (NEECS) and issues relating to sustainable transport and oil are being addressed as part of an emerging work programme led by the Ministry of Transport;

f. note that significant improvements have been and are continuing to be made in other key areas as part of ongoing work programmes, e.g. effective and well-regulated electricity and gas markets, climate change policy and the Resource Management Act;

g. agree that it is important to continue to place the work described above in the wider context of what the government is trying to achieve in sustainable energy so that connections can be made across areas and momentum is not lost in making improvements which are both important and pressing;

h. note that in respect of the NEECS review a key challenge will be to articulate coherent strategies for accelerating the uptake of energy efficiency and renewables that draw on and integrate the various efforts of relevant organisations, especially EECA, the Electricity Commission, the Climate Change Office, the Ministry of Transport, business organisations and local government;

i. note that a scheduled report back for September 2005, led by the Ministry of Transport, will focus on aligning transport policies to contribute to climate change objectives, including exploring options for reducing fuel use, optimising transport choices and promoting alternative fuels;

j. note that the Ministry of Economic Development has recently undertaken a review of its modelling work ahead of a sustainable energy futures report (formerly "Energy Outlook") which will be released by mid-2006;

k. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Research, Science and Technology, to report to POL by 30 November 2005 on what steps, if any, should be taken to strengthen the contribution of research, science and technology policy to sustainable energy, including in the areas of research and development, technology testing and international technology collaboration;

l. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development, to consider what further steps, if any, could be taken to raise awareness of sustainable energy issues, and report their conclusions by 31 December 2005 to the Minister of Energy in the first instance;

m. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development, in consultation with local government and industry groups, to report to POL by 31 December 2005 on steps that can be taken to improve the availability and quality of information to support the development of sustainable energy policies;

n. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development, in consultation with local government and other relevant stakeholders, to report to POL by 31 December 2005 with recommendations as to the possible adoption of transition experiments modelled on the Netherlands' experience;

o. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development, to report to POL by 31 December 2005 on what additional actions could be taken to pursue sustainable energy objectives through government procurement decisions;

p. note that officials do not consider that any machinery of government changes for sustainable energy are required at present, but recommend that this question be kept under review;

q. direct sustainable energy officials, led by the Ministry of Economic Development, to report back to POL by 31 March 2006 on whether the government should produce a further public document on sustainable energy and, if so, what the nature of that document might be.