Warm Front ‘Defective on all fronts’ – MPs
North Cornwall’s MP, Dan Rogerson, has slammed the Government’s Warm Front scheme, which is designed to improve energy efficiency in Britain’s homes and save money on energy bills. He has called the scheme ‘a great idea badly executed’.
The local MP challenged the Secretary of State for the Environment in a recent Commons exchange to address pricing disparities where sums made available to people by the Energy Action Grants Agency are insufficient to cover charges made by government-appointed contractors.
Local firms could install central heating systems and undertake work on cavity wall insulation, loft insulation, draughtproofing, and hot water tank insulation but the scheme will only fund works undertaken by companies with a government seal of approval.
Commenting, Dan Rogerson said:
“This is an absurd situation. Local firms can do this important work for half the fee charged by government’s contractors. Yet the Warm Front scheme won’t pay for their work.
“Conversely, the grant system only pays about half the bill from a government contractor, so the householder has to dig deep for the difference, just so that Ministers can tick their boxes.
“Unless and until the Secretary of State for the Environment addresses this anomaly people will be likely to consider Warm Front defective on all fronts.
“That said, it could be worth checking out what grants are available to you, and who the government will presently allow you to employ to do the work. Measures like insulating lofts and cavity walls can save hundreds on energy bills so can prove really worth while.
“Don’t let the incompetent administration of this scheme put you off!”
Notes to Editors (extracted from Warm Front website – http://www.warmfront.co.uk)
If you own your own home or rent it from a private landlord, you may be eligible for a grant of up to £2,700 (or £4,000 if oil central heating is involved) under the Warm Front Scheme. Warm Front Grants are available in England only; other schemes operate in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
If the property has previously received Warm Front improvements, the grant now available will be the balance of £2,700 (or £4,000 if oil central heating is involved) less the value of all works previously completed.
Applicants meeting the following criteria may be eligible for a Warm Front Grant.
1. Householders aged 60 or over in receipt of one or more of the following benefits:
· Income Support
· Council Tax Benefit
· Housing Benefit
· Job Seekers Allowance (income-based)
· Pension Credit
2. Householders with a child under 16, or pregnant women with maternity certificate MAT-B1, in receipt of one or more of the following benefits:
· Income Support
· Council Tax Benefit
· Housing Benefit
· Job Seekers Allowance (income-based)
· Pension Credit
3. Householders in receipt of one or more of the following benefits:
· Working Tax Credit (with an income of less than £15,460, which must include a disability element)
· Disability Living Allowance
· Child Tax Credit (with an income of less than £15,460)
· Housing Benefit (which must include a disability premium)
· Income Support (which must include a disability premium)
· Council Tax Benefit (which must include a disability premium)
· War Disablement Pension (which must include a mobility supplement or Constant Attendance Allowance)
· Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (which must include a mobility supplement or Constant Attendance Allowance)
· Attendance Allowance
NOTES:
· The term 'Householder' includes the applicant's spouse, or partner, if they are living with the applicant
