HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Boiler scrappage scheme launched [January 2010]
The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 5 January 2010.
A national scheme to upgrade household boilers to cut carbon and help consumers save money on fuel bills has been launched today.
The Prime Minister and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband kick-started the Government’s Boiler Scrappage Scheme during a visit to a British Gas Training Academy in London.
Up to 125,000 households in England with working “G-rated” boilers – the least efficient rating – will be able to apply through the Energy Saving Trust for £400 off the price of a new “A-rated” boiler or a renewable heating system such as a biomass boiler.
The initiative has prompted a number of companies to launch similar programmes which the Government said will allow many more householders to upgrade to more efficient, more environmentally-friendly boilers.
The PM said:
“Today’s announcement will slash household energy bills and carbon emissions while providing an important boost for the British heating industry. The Government’s new scrappage scheme will help to secure jobs across the tens of thousands of small and medium businesses that form a vital component of Britain’s low carbon economy. The scheme shows how this Government continues to invest in the British industries and jobs of the future.”
Replacing 125,000 of the least efficient boilers could cut about 140,000 tonnes of CO2 a year – the equivalent of taking 45,000 cars off the road – and the households taking part could see their fuel bills cut by at least 15 per cent a year.
It is one of a package of Government measures which are already working to improve household energy efficiency, such as Warm Front, the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) and Decent Homes.
