| answer text |
<p>The Government wants to encourage all householders to invest in energy efficiency,
whether rural or urban. The Green Deal Home Improvement Fund is designed to incentivise
householders in England and Wales to install a wide range of energy efficiency measures,
such as insulation and better glazing. Many rural properties have solid walls, making
them well placed to take maximum advantage of the scheme - such households could be
eligible to receive up to £6000 for installing solid wall insulation, or up to £7000
for installing solid wall insulation and two other eligible measures.</p><p>However
DECC does consider it appropriate to exclude oil and LPG fired boilers from the GDHIF
scheme. The Government fully recognises that LPG and oil, like other fossil fuels,
will continue to play a part in the UK's energy mix, but we must begin to revolutionise
the way we heat our homes to make the transition to a low carbon economy. To this
end, DECC has introduced the domestic renewable heat incentive (RHI) scheme to support
renewable heating systems; this support aims to compensate householders for the additional
costs they face when installing a renewable heating system compared to an oil heating
system. The domestic RHI is targeted at, but not limited to, homes off the gas grid.
Incentivising oil and LPG boilers in this context would undermine the balance struck
in the design of the RHI, and potentially cause confusion for consumers. For low income
and vulnerable customers, support is available through the Affordable Warmth element
of the Energy Company Obligation. Through this, energy suppliers deliver heating cost
reductions in eligible off gas and on gas grid households through the provision of
any measures which will reduce costs. We have proposed changes to ECO which will actively
incentivise suppliers to deliver measures to non-gas fuelled households.</p><p> </p>
|
|
