Comment on end of Green Homes Grant

Commenting on the news that the Green Homes Grant Voucher Scheme will close to new applications on 31 March, Jess Ralston, Analyst at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU) said: “Scrapping the green homes grant with four days’ notice leaves a clear gap in the credibility of this Government’s climate ambitions and could damage the public perceptions of home upgrades schemes for years to come, threatening our ability to deliver net zero. Not only leaving tens of thousands of families that were interested now with no way to access support, it’s also a kick in the teeth for businesses that bought into the scheme and invested in new workers trusting that the scheme would have longevity beyond six months.

“The pressure is now on to deliver a replacement that works, quickly, and by learning from mistakes from previous schemes instead of repeating them. There’s a good understanding of the issues with the Green Homes Grant and the sector has the ability to respond, so a well-thought-out successor could unlock huge economic and environmental potential. The UK’s housing stock is in a sorry state and many of our European neighbours have effective energy efficiency policy – so we really have no excuse for not coming up with something that actually works.”