Green Homes Grant Axed

Just over a month after the government slashed funding for the Green Homes Grant it has now officially axed the scheme due to a low uptake and complaints over how the scheme was being running. The move now raises concerns that the UK’s NetZero target will become unachievable.

Build Back Greener Failure?

The Green Homes Grant has officially been scrapped by the government despite it being the main focus of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Covid-19 recovery and ‘build back greener’ campaign.

The scheme initially had a budget of £1.5billion and offered households grants of up to £10,000 to install insulation and new low-carbon heating systems.

First launched back in September last year, the scheme was initially given a six-month deadline for any work to get done, but due to restrictions imposed as a result of the second and third Covid-19 lockdowns the deadline was pushed back until March 2022. Now the scheme has been axed altogether due to low uptake and the severe economic impacts caused by the pandemic.

The few households that did apply and who were accepted will have their vouchers honoured but no new applications will be accepted from April 1^st.

Also read: Government slashes Green Homes Grant Voucher Funding due to low uptake

What went wrong?

According to the government many households were reluctant to apply for the Green Homes Grant due to fears over catching Covid from contractors who would have to enter their homes to install insulation and replace heating systems.

There were more than 123,000 applications for the grant by the end of February, but only 28,000 vouchers had been issued and only 5,800 energy efficiency measures had been installed.

Despite this some areas of the country reported that contractors were actually inundated with demand with some households complaining that they couldn’t even reach firms over the phone.

Contractors who signed up to take part in the scheme also complained that the money was spent was so stringently and payments delayed so badly that some businesses were forced to close.

On the other side of things households complained that builders and contractors were exploiting the scheme with some complaining that contractors were carrying out work worth £3,000 but then charging £5,000.

Also read: ‘Green’ Tariffs to come under increased government scrutiny over growing ‘Greenwashing’ concerns

Botched execution

The Government had awarded a contract to a US company to administer the grants, but it too came in for criticism with many households and building contractors receiving conflicting information and forced to wade through excessive red tape.

Just last week a committee of MPs slammed the failures of the Green Homes Grant that concluded that the scheme was ‘botched in implementation and that the administration of the scheme seems nothing short of disastrous.’

The scheme had been hailed for its ability to create new ‘green’ jobs during the pandemic but in reality, it resulted in some contractors forced to lay off staff as a direct consequence of the way the botched handling of the grants.

Also read: New Government rules on white goods could save £75 on average Energy Bills

What next?

With the Green Homes Grant officially axed the government announced that it would be making £300 million available to the aiding low income households to improve their properties energy efficiency.

“Upgrading the country’s homes with energy efficiency measures means we can cut emissions and save people money on their energy bills. Today’s funding boost will mean even more households across England are able to access these vital grants through their local authority, this latest announcement takes our total energy efficiency spending to over £1.3bn in the next financial year, giving installers the certainty, they need to plan ahead, create new jobs and train the next generation of builders, plumbers and tradespeople,” said Kwasi Kwarteng, the secretary of state for business and energy.

Commenting on the government’s announcement, Energy UK’s Chief Executive Emma Pinchbeck, said: “It’s good to see the government recognise that energy efficiency is critical to delivering their own net-zero target and that the local authority scheme under the Green Homes Grant was working well.

“However, there was real enthusiasm from the public for the Green Homes Grant and scrapping it before it got off the ground will undermine trust. Secondly, £300 million is not enough to close the gap with the government’s own net-zero target.

“We must see further action if we are to decarbonise our homes, so we hope to see bold commitments in line with the scale of the challenge in the forthcoming Heat and Buildings Strategy.”

Also read: Green Tariffs alone not enough to attract Environmentally minded consumers

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