<p>Housing minister Margaret Beckett today (December 17) began a three month consultation period on plans to make all new homes zero carbon by setting out the government's proposals to achieve the 2016 target.</p> <br><p>The document - while calling on housebuilders to make huge strides in improving the energy efficiency of the fabric of new homes - also accepts the practicality of the situation by setting a cap on the amount to be spent on solutions, providing housebuilders certainty on costs.</p> <br><p>The government said that the consultation - which runs until March 18 2009 - meets its green objectives while recognising the difficult economic conditions facing the housing industry.</p> <br><p>Proposals include:</p> <br><p>* requiring a greatly increased level of energy efficiency in the fabric of new homes</p> <br><p>* setting a minimum level of carbon reduction that developers must achieve on the site of their housing development</p> <br><p>* requiring developers to tackle the remaining carbon emissions of the new homes by choosing measures from a list of "allowable solutions" such as energy efficient appliances or exporting low and zero carbon heat and cooling to other developments</p> <br><p>* setting a limit on the amount expected to be spent on these allowable solutions to provide …