One-third of UK funding for insulation and heat pumps remains unspent

The Guardian reports that a third of the funding pledged by the UK government for insulation and installing heat pumps has not yet been spent, analysis has shown, despite the continuing energy bills and cost of living crises

About £2.1bn remains unspent of the £6.6bn that was supposed to be used between 2020 and 2025 on making buildings more energy efficient and decarbonising heat.

The funding is part of the £9.2bn that was promised for such spending in the Conservative general election manifesto of 2019.

Insulating homes and switching from gas to heat pumps would save households money, and ease the cost-of-living crisis, but most people struggle to meet the upfront costs of such measures without government help.

The government’s failure to spend the cash that was allocated reflects a lack of effective policies on domestic insulation and decarbonisation, according to Juliet Phillips, senior policy adviser at the E3G thinktank.

Three years ago, the green homes grant was announced to fanfare, but the scheme, described as “botched” by a parliamentary committee, was abandoned within six months of its start.

This followed similar abortive schemes over the past decade and more.

This has made the housing industry reluctant to invest in training people to insulate homes and install heat pumps.

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The Guardian - One-third of UK funding for insulation and heat pumps remains unspent