300 businesses and organisations, including Bosch, Mitsubishi, EDF, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, and Citizen’s Advice raised concerns about the future of the industry
Plans to cut funding for home insulation and heat pumps could kill off an industry and cost tens of thousands of jobs, the Chancellor has been warned.
In a letter to the PM, Rachel Reeves and Ed Miliband, 300 businesses and organisations, including Bosch, Mitsubishi, EDF, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, and Citizen’s Advice also raised concerns for thousands of businesses.
It comes with the Chancellor rumoured to be considering cuts to the energy company obligation (ECO), which funds energy-efficiency schemes for low-income homes, such as insulation and energy-efficient boilers.
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There are also fears of a massive cut to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which offers up to £7,500 to help cover the cost of installing a heat pump to encourage homes to ditch polluting gas boilers.
In a plea to think again the companies claimed any cuts would lead to job losses in a “rapidly growing” and vital part of the UK economy.
They said: “As well as causing immediate economic damage, cuts would keep more households hooked on imported, high-cost gas, making the UK more vulnerable to volatile gas prices which have already cost the UK economy and households over £100 billion over the last four years.
“Each building heated with a heat pump reduces equivalent gas use by over 80%. Maintaining funding provides a long-term route out of our current predicament of dependence on fuel imports.”
Responding, Leo Vincent, Senior Policy Advisor at climate change think tank E3G said: “If these plans come to pass, the government will decimate tens of thousands of jobs and trigger the collapse of hundreds if not thousands of small to medium businesses.
“Not only that, millions of families will lose the opportunity to have permanently lower bills and the country will have lost the chance to cut its carbon emissions. Cutting warm homes and clean energy policies to fund temporary bill savings is exactly the kind of sticking plaster politics this government promised not to do, and it must urgently change course.”
A Treasury spokesperson said: “We do not comment on Budget speculation.
“We recognise energy costs are significant concern for households, and this Government is taking decisive action to tackle it including extending the Warm Homes Discount and funding to help upgrade thousands of low-income homes to be warmer and more energy efficient.”