Government energy saving grant: what has Rishi Sunak said about the £5k grant and how does it work?

Eligible home improvements will include installing insulation and double glazing.
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Homeowners in England will get up to £5,000 of government money to make their homes energy efficient, as part of a £3billion green jobs package to be announced in the Chancellor’s summer statement tomorrow.

What is the Government energy saving grant?

Rishi Sunak will give grants worth a total £2 billion for energy-efficient home improvements, including installing insulation, double glazing and replacing old boilers.

The remaining £1 billion of the package will be spent making public buildings including schools and hospitals more environmentally friendly, with £50 million going towards retrofitting social housing with insulation, double glazing and heat pumps.

How does it work?

The Government will pay at least two thirds of the cost of energy-saving private home improvements under the Green Homes Grant, due to launch in September and last for one year.

This means that for an improvement costing £4,000 a homeowner would pay £1,320, while the Government would contribute the remaining £2,680.

Homeowners will apply online and be directed to accredited local suppliers, who will provide a quote. Once the work is approved, a voucher for the Government’s share of the cost will be issued.

The poorest households will not have to contribute anything to the cost and could receive up to £10,000, Business Secretary Alok Sharma told the BBC.

He said: "What [the scheme] ultimately means is lower bills for households, hundreds of pounds off energy bills every year, it's supporting jobs and is very good news for the environment."

The Treasury said better insulation could save households as much as £600 a year on energy bills — and claimed the scheme could support more than 100,000 jobs. The funding also aims to help Britain meet its legally binding target to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.

While Labour broadly supported the scheme, it said that it must continue for more than one year to retain jobs and cut energy emissions. Ed Miliband, the shadow business secretary, also said the scheme doesn’t do enough for renters.

“It appears there is almost nothing for the people who rent the 8.5 million homes in the social rented sector and private rented sector, which has the worst energy-efficiency standards. That means one third of people are left out,” he said.

Greenpeace UK pointed out that Britain’s green funding fell behind Germany and France, which have pledged £36 billion and £13.5 billion respectively.