Green Deal Gamble: The £120 'Bet' That Could Win £1,850

Cash giveaways on energy-efficient home improvements, funded by the Green Deal, could be scrapped after the general election – but £5m remains ready to be claimed. The pot of money, up to £1,850 per household, is available on energy-efficient improvements such as cavity wall and loft insulation, a new boiler and double glazing. The £540m fund set aside to fund Green Deal home improvements has an uncertain future under the next government.  This £70m pot runs out in 10 days and it will be up to the new energy secretary to decide when – if – to dip into the remaining money. But DECC said there was still £5m available for eligible home improvements. Read more on the Daily Telegraph website.

Green Deal Fund Exhausts £24m in Just A Day

Twenty-four hours into the Government's Green Deal cashback relaunch and £24 million of taxpayers' money put aside for solid wall insulation has already run dry. The latest injection of Green Deal cash paid householders up to £5,600 for taking out solid wall insulation and a further two home improvement measures. Money still remains available in the £6m fund for the other measures. The solid wall insulation fund paid up to £4,000 on 67pc of the cost, providing cladding on interior or exterior walls to keep in heat. It is used when cavity wall insulation is not possible. The Government set aside £24 million for solid wall insulation and £6 million for other energy-efficiency measures. Read more on the Daily Telegraph website.

Hundreds of Thousands Face Fuel Poverty Misery

A massive shortfall in funding for insulation programmes for low-income households will leave the Government's fuel poverty target in tatters, according to a new report. Research undertaken by fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) shows that hundreds of thousands of households will be living in poorly insulated properties by 2016 – the date by which the Government undertook to eradicate fuel poverty in England. The figures show that even on the most optimistic estimates, 45% of fuel-poor households who could benefit from cavity wall insulation – the single most cost-effective energy-saving measure – will be excluded from support as a result of inadequate funding. Read more on the NEA website.