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Green Deal will improve energy efficiency for Welsh homes

Wales Office Minister, Stephen Crabb MP is urging people in Wales to pay for energy efficient home improvements with the savings on their energy bills.

This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Wales Office Minister, Stephen Crabb MP is urging people in Wales to take advantage of a new UK government initiative designed to give homes and businesses a new way of paying for energy efficient building improvements.

The ‘Green Deal’ - launched today by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) gives people the opportunity to pay for energy efficient home improvements with the savings on their energy bills.

Households in Wales who use the Green Deal to make energy saving home improvements will also qualify for hundreds of pounds of cashback from the Green Deal cashback scheme. The more work households decide to have done, the more cash they could receive with packages potentially worth over £1,000.

Welcoming the initiative, Wales Office Minister, Stephen Crabb said:

With families and businesses across Wales facing the challenges of rising fuel and energy costs, the launch of the Green Deal will give people the opportunity to have more flexibility in the way to pay for energy saving building improvements.

The improvements they can make through the Green Deal - new insulation or heating systems - will give homeowners the opportunity to transform their homes, and most importantly, reduce their energy bills.

Business and industry have also widely welcomed the initiative which will present them with the jobs and growth opportunities that come with the task of updating Britain’s housing stock.

Notes to editors

There are 45 different types of improvements currently available under the Green Deal, helping people warm up their homes and pay for some or all of the improvements over time through their electricity bills. £125 million is available in the government funded cashback scheme.

  • 8 million households could benefit from solid wall insulation
  • 4 million households could benefit from cavity insulation
  • 60,000 jobs are expected to be supported in the insulation sector alone by 2015 - up from 26,000 in 2011
  • £3.5 million of funding to training in key Green Deal skills
  • £270 a year could be saved if a typical three bedroom semi-detached house installed just solid wall insulation
  • 38% of the UK’s total greenhouse gas emissions come from leaky buildings
Published 28 January 2013