The government has come under renewed pressure to extend the Green Homes Grant Scheme after a parliamentary committee this week reported that only 20,000 of the planned 600,000 vouchers have been issued in the first four months of the scheme.
A shortage of TrustMark registered installers – only around 1,300 nationwide – was largely blamed for the ‘snail’s pace’ progress and ministers are pinning hopes on the extension until March 2022 to give industry more confidence to hire installers with the necessary certifications. Meanwhile, there are further calls for the Chancellor to announce a ‘material, multi-year extension’ to the scheme in next month’s Budget.
Environmental Audit Committee chairman, Rt Hon Philip Dunne MP said the principle of the Green Homes Grant should be commended. as a timely initiative to boost energy efficiency of homes and to address the growing unemployment crisis triggered by the pandemic.
“At this rate it will take over 10 years to fulfil the Government’s expectation,” he continued, “This scheme has good potential. But it needs a radical overhaul now the scheme has been extended. It must streamline the application process by removing unnecessary bureaucracy and must make sure the supply of skills meets the demand that 600,000 vouchers, and a further boost by the Chancellor in the March Budget, would drive.”
The committee’s report adds that the BEIS is due to launch £6.9 million skills competition in September, this is only seven months ahead of the deadline for the Green Homes Grant, so is unlikely to have a significant impact on the availability of skilled engineers to undertake Green Homes Grant installations. It concludes: “This next crunch could be avoided if the Chancellor announces a material, multi-year extension to the Green Homes Grant scheme in the March Budget.
