8th May 2009 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A delivery plan backed by financial incentives to upgrade all Britain’s homes by 2030 needs to be put in place now, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) in its response to the Government’s draft Heat and Energy Saving Strategy consultation.
Brian Berry, Director External Affairs at the FMB said:
“The Government’s aim to upgrade all Britain’s homes by 2030 won’t succeed unless the financial incentives are put in place to create a new market for greener, more energy efficient homes. Householders have still to convinced of the merits of spending thousands of pounds on energy efficient improvements with little prospect of seeing a return on their money. If the Government is serious about its commitment to upgrade our homes it needs to introduce some financial incentives such as cutting VAT to 5 per cent for home improvements; council tax rebates and/or the introduction of green mortgages.”
Berry continued:
“Britain could learn from Germany which lends money to local banks who provide ten year loans to people who want to retrofit their home. In 2007, the German Government lent 850 million Euros which resulted in 5 billion Euros of retrofit. On this basis the UK could achieve the transformation of the private housing stock for around £1 billion a year of government money.”
Berry concluded:
“More detailed information is also needed to help householders understand the entire process of retrofitting homes from start to finish. At the moment it is difficult even for the most enthusiastic to know what can be done to make their homes more energy efficient. Better use of Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) would be a good start as would the creation of a national database of EPC ratings to help understand the overall condition of Britain’s housing stock and assess where help is most needed.”
