Government called upon to bring back boiler scrappage

24 April 2012

Posted by Kim Bardsley

The government has been called upon to bring back its successful Boiler Scrappage Scheme, which ran throughout 2010.

Brett Amphlett from the Builders' Merchants Federation said in the magazine that he thinks the money spent on starting the initiative up again would be paltry compared to the amount the Treasury writes off in unpaid taxes each year.

He pointed out that as winters continue to be cold, householders have no choice but to keep turning on their boilers, resulting in higher costs for heating oil and other fuels.

However, if more homes were fitted with energy efficient boilers, these costs could be driven down while also cutting the UK's carbon footprint, Mr Amphlett said.

"It is a tried-and-tested way to improve the energy performance of homes - and one that the public responded to," he added.

The Energy Saving Trust states that 118,249 new boilers were installed under the scrappage scheme, which saw homeowners given a grant of up to £800 for new equipment.

Scotland's government is still running such an initiative and recently made more funding available for it.

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