Is The Government Getting Serious About The Green Deal?
When a new government policy is announced its launch is often accompanied by concerns that its demise is not in the too distant future. How many times can we point to policy which hasn’t quite caught the public’s imagination (or caught too much of it) and then been promptly binned?
There’s plenty of us in the industry who have high hopes for the Green Deal, but also fear for its future. Involvement in the deal isn’t cheap; it costs large sums of money to get staff up to speed. And we all remember the Home Information Packs – how much money was squandered during its brief life?
So when we heard that the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) was to be substantially increased, we were naturally pleased. Not only because it means our customers will get an even better deal, but because of the involvement of the Green Deal. All new installations will now require a Green Deal assessment prior to payment of the grant. This will result in an additional cost to the customer (probably only around £75 more than the previous EPC requirement) but that’s more than offset by the new payment amount.
By involving the Green Deal in the RHPP, not only does this increase uptake and so boost public awareness, but it also encourages customers to look at other areas to save energy. Too often we face the perception that energy saving features cost more to implement than they save. We don’t enjoy the reliable sun of the Mediterranean; we need to use a lot of energy to keep ourselves comfortable. The more the Green Deal is popularised, the more often we will see people turn to renewable energy as a way to save for the future.
So let’s hope this the RHPP strengthens the Green Deal and renewable energy in general, it’s certainty a step in the right direction