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Labour wants Green New Deal to replace axed government scheme

Labour has called for what it describes as a Green New Deal to replace the axed government scheme which had been planned to benefit landlords and owner occupiers.

The government announced in March that the £1.5 billion Green Homes Grant programme - which was for landlords and owner occupiers - would end with almost no notice. 

After launching last September, by the end of February there were over 123,000 applications for the grants but just 28,000 vouchers had been issued and only 5,800 energy-efficient installations made - the scheme was then axed almost overnight because of delivery reasons, with too few skilled fitters.

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Now Labour has made a broad brush call for a replacement, although with few details to back up the demand.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says: “The UK must rise to this moment and lead by example. That means rapid action to create good, green jobs across the country. And it means a proper strategy to buy, make and sell more in Britain, to create good, unionised jobs in clean energy and through supply chains.

 

“We’ve had a decade of broken promises on green jobs and climate action under the Conservatives …  Nobody here in the UK can afford for this issue to be yet another example of Boris Johnson bluster. We need real action, now. It is time for a Green New Deal.”

A party campaign called Green New Deal calls for retrofitting improved insulation and heat source pumps in existing homes, including rental properties.

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    Having jumped through all the hoops for this scheme and received vouchers for insulation, I had some of those 22,000 vouchers that cannot be redeemed because the scheme was cancelled.

    Do I believe any Govt funded scheme will be worth applying to? NO. Will I do the required work to my rentals without financial support? NO. Will my properties reach EPC C without it? NO. Will I sell my properties? YES. Where will all the tenants go once evicted? I have no idea.

    Will EPC C in the PRS save the planet? NO. Will it precipitate the biggest housing crisis this country has ever seen? I believe it will.

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    I've found these grant schemes to be a total waste of time, if and when I'm forced to evict good tenants because the property is below a C then that's it, good tenants out on the street hunting what few properties are then available to rent, council housing department's problem

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    Most good local tradesmen don't participate in these Grant aided schemes which attract the cowboys who inflate their prices beyond the benefit of any grant given.

    Market forces should be allowed to work without government interference.

    My local council is trying to give money away in my local affluent area for new boilers but only to detached and semi detached houses. My daughter is in a mid terrace house in a less affluent area but doesn't qualify because her house doesn't use as much energy as mine does, so the "benefit" of a new boiler would be less to her, despite it being less affordable to her than to me and my well-heeled neighbours.

    Is this the policy Labour supports nowadays?

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    Re the cow boys, some yrs ago now I went for a replacement boiler grant, tenant was a single mum working 16 hrs a week, I got this smart arse on the phone wanting me to pay a contribution of £1900 towards the cost, I didn't bother, I bought a Baxi replacement boiler kit from Mr Central Heating for £700 inc vat and my plumber (sadly now retired) charged me £500 (no vat not registered) to fit it, and it's still going strong, grants are a waste of time and end up costing us more.

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