A new report from the Environmental Audit Committee (EAC) has criticised the government for not responding sufficiently to the Stern Review. The committee says that the government must implement ‘green taxes' to tackle carbon emissions.

Nick Burrows, Innovation Architect at Telindus comments: "There is no doubt that British businesses are aware of the drive to reduce carbon emissions. However, to date there has been a tendency to pay lip service to the issue, rather than addressing it head on. Much mooted initiatives, such as home working, are not as ‘green' as one might think. In fact, a proportion of the carbon problem is simply passed from the office to the home.

"With fifty per cent of energy consumption used up by buildings, organisations needs to look at the energy efficiency of their buildings, while home owners should pay close attention to the energy escaping from their homes. Similar to how white goods are labelled to show their energy rating, buildings need to be equally transparent. And, to make significant changes to a building's energy efficiency rating, this process needs to start at the building design phase.

"By incorporating technology into the initial design stages of a building, we can ensure that all buildings - regardless of function or location - are environmentally controlled and sustainable. Simple methods, like monitoring buildings to identify when workers are in an office, will ensure that a room is not unnecessarily lit for periods of time. Intelligent buildings can effectively take control of energy efficiency, without relying on changes in behaviour, such as habitually turning off lights when you leave a room."