Fmb Against Mandatory Green Improvements - Knauf Insulation UK

Online, April 21, 2012 (Newswire.com) - The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has lambasted government plans to force UK homeowners to take on expensive energy-efficient home improvements when they extend their property under the Green Deal banner.

Brian Berry, chief executive of the FMB, said the move will be counterproductive towards incentivising this type of behaviour among homeowners and will be impractical and unpopular if it goes ahead.

According to the FMB chief, there is an undoubted urgent need for homes across the country to receive attention in order to boost their energy efficiency, but dictating to individuals through legislation is not the best way to motivate people to part with their hard-earned cash for green improvements.

He advised: "A good way would be to reduce VAT on energy efficient repairs or lower the council tax. The last thing homeowners need at this time is extra cost."

Mr Berry added that a recent poll of FMB members revealed 70 per cent believed these latest proposals by the government are simply economically unfeasible, as well as being technically and functionally unsound.

Furthermore, 73 per cent of respondents believe less work will be carried out under the Green Deal if these mandatory rules are implemented.

A spokesperson for the FMB also told ELN: "It is an admission that they have failed to make Green Deal sufficiently attractive so they are going to use regulation to force people to have it whether they like it or not. If they want to support Green Deal, they need to introduce meaningful incentives."

Gordon Miller, co-founder and sustainability & communications director of Sustain Worldwide, added his voice to the disapproval of plans for mandatory green home improvements for Brits earlier this week.

He claimed any move to dictate to people the improvements they have to make to their property in order to be eligible for Green Deal funding could backfire and create a sense of frustration as well as a lack of enthusiasm for the initiative.

Knauf Insulation provides sustainable insulation solutions for loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and solid wall insulation.