Green Deal in danger of sleepwalking into obscurity, says ECA

Paul Reeve, director of business services at the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA) says: “The Energy and Climate Change Committee’s report into the Green Deal issued this week is a wake-up call to government, which must keep on top of Green Deal performance if it is to prevent its flagship policy from sleepwalking into obscurity.

“Now the Green Deal is live, the government must be quick to react to what is happening on the ground, and make changes if success is in doubt. Considering the PV FITs fiasco was worsened by DECC relying on outdated figures on solar installations, DECC should be accessing real-time information on the Green Deal, right now.

“Millions of homes and businesses could benefit from the Green Deal, but at the current rate of assessments it will take around 100 years to get round to them. The first figures on actual Green Deal installation work, which come out in June, will be crucial.

“Depending on what these figures say, DECC may need to be ready with a Plan B. That should include reducing interest rates, which are widely seen as uncompetitive. Even simple measures like making the early adopter loans more obvious to consumers could help.”