The Guardian found that the Duchies of Lancaster and Cornwall and the Sandringham estate are renting properties with EPC ratings of F or G. Since 2020, landlords in England and Wales have been barred from letting homes rated below E unless they hold a specific exemption.
Tenants pay the price. Homes rated below legal energy efficiency standards mean higher heating bills, colder rooms, and worse living conditions. One of Britain's richest landowners skips the cost of upgrades while renters absorb the penalty.
The reputational damage is obvious. If Charles and William want the environmental credibility they've spent years building, they need to fix these homes faster than a tabloid news cycle. Publish any exemptions that exist. Upgrade the rest. Britain's climate politics asks ordinary households to retrofit and conserve while elite institutions operate as though the rules apply to everyone else. This is the easy call.
Filed to the World desk · Aug 15