This project aims to take an intersectional approach towards distributional justice implications of recent and planned energy demand reduction policies in the UK and France, with the aim to generate policy recommendations for creating a fairer net zero transition in the UK, with implications for France and other EU countries.

This PhD study will address the need for in-depth country-comparative research on fairness implications of energy demand reduction policies by examining the UK and France. As such, this project will answer the following questions:
1. How do energy demand reduction policies, e.g., through carbon and energy taxes, and schemes that target home energy efficiency and transport emissions, affect different types of disadvantaged people, through an intersectional lens, in France and the UK?

2. What types of measures exist in France and the UK to protect disadvantaged individuals from / compensate them for regressive impacts of energy demand reduction policies?
3. How effective are these compensation measures in benefiting disadvantaged people and how do they impact different types of disadvantaged people from an intersectionality perspective? Which policy recommendations follow for making energy demand reduction policies fairer?

Research
This project will apply a mixed-method abductive approach consisting of statistical analysis of relevant survey data accompanied by qualitative analysis of policy documents and interviews with policy experts as well as members of the UK and French public. This project will be delivered by publication, consisting of three articles in peer-reviewed journals, and a policy brief. Detailed methods for each deliverable are presented below. All the publications will rely on a fundamental conceptual framework presented hereafter, exploiting different aspects of the framework, whilst utilising primary and secondary data generated for each publication