The government finally admitted the implementation of its flagship Green Deal scheme has been delayed until 2013, with retrofit work now not expected to come to market until February. The Green Deal was due to start this October, with the industry hoping it would lead to a spike in retrofit work in the final quarter of 2012. While the legal framework for the Green Deal will be in place in time, Davey admitted this week that households will not be able to take part in the scheme until January 28 2012 “Essentially, most aspects of the Green Deal will start on 1 October – but the finance plans can only be signed from 28 January next year. Under the Green Deal legislation, you have to enter the plan before the work is done.”
In March, Building revealed that the six major energy firms had told ministers they would not be ready to deliver the payment mechanism for the Green Deal until “first quarter 2013”. The news comes amid concerns the Green Deal’s “soft launch” and delays to its full implementation could undermine the industry, with insulation industry leaders writing to ministers this month warning of job losses. Keith Marshall, chief executive of construction skills body SummitSkills, which is backing the campaign, said the delay to the Green Deal confirmed the industry’s “worst fears”. He said the government had caused a “great deal of uncertainty” in recent months and the industry was unclear on its commitment to its flagship scheme. “There are real question marks over it now,” he said. A DECC spokesperson said the government would “introduce the Green Deal through a responsible and controlled approach”.
