Chancellor set to announce £5,000 vouchers to households for home improvements

Homeowners are set to get £5,000 worth of vouchers to insulate their homes as part of the government’s Green Scheme.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak is reportedly to announce that £2 billion worth of vouchers will be sent to homeowners to allow them to insulate their homes.

The announcement will come as part of the Chancellor’s Green Scheme which sets to make 100,000 green jobs and make hundreds of homes environmentally friendly. 

Having insulation or improving current insulation in your home can help reduce the households environmental impact and carbon footprint through reduced energy consumption. It can also reduce the number of chemicals released into the environment through air conditioning units. 

The Green Homes Grant scheme is set to provide extra jobs for plumbers, builders and tradespeople to help the industry and economy as a whole recover.

The announcement is set to be made on July 8th, as part of the mini-budget news. 

The scheme is planned to go live in September and means families will save up to £600 a year on energy bills, according to Treasury estimates. 

The grants – which could be up to £10,000 for the poorest families – are part of a wider £3 billion investment into green technology as part of the UK’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2050.

The extra £1 billion is set to be spent on revamping public buildings and social housing. 

 “As Britain recovers from the outbreak, it’s vital we do everything in our power to support and protect livelihoods across the nation,” Mr Sunak said, speaking to The Sun. 

He added: “Our Green Homes Grant will not only cut families’ bills by making their homes more energy-efficient, it will also kick-start our economy by creating thousands of green jobs and supporting those skilled tradespeople who are ready to work.”

The scheme means the government will cover at least two-thirds of the costs to homeowners as part of green improvements. 

For example, a £4,000 bill for cavity wall and floor insulation for semi-detached or end-terrace house would be split as £1,320 to the homeowner and £2,680 to the government. Those on the lowest incomes will not be expected to pay anything.

Mr Sunak is expected to reveal a £50 million project that will make social housing greener and save the poorest households £200 a year in energy bills. 

News of the green voucher scheme has been welcomed by businesses.

Mike Cherry, boss of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “This will offer a much-needed boost to tradespeople and others whose livelihoods were affected by the pandemic by creating green jobs, while at the same time improving energy efficiency.

“The Government must now ensure this scheme is easy to access in order to get those who need it the most back in work as quickly as possible.

“We hope this heralds similar measures to incentivise small business owners to make their premises more environmentally friendly.

“The Government will not hit its environmental targets if businesses aren’t empowered to be part of the solution.”