Government has finally admitted the implementation of its flagship Green Deal scheme has been delayed until 2013, with retrofit work now not expected to come to market until February. The Green Deal was due to start last month, with the industry hoping it would lead to a spike in retrofit work in the final quarter of 2012.
While the legal framework for the Green Deal will be in place in time, Ed Davey, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change admitted that households will not be able to take part in the scheme until January 28 2012. Says he: “Essentially, most aspects of the Green Deal will start on October 1 – but the finance plans can only be signed from January 28 next year. Under the Green Deal legislation, you have to enter the plan before the work is done.”
Earlier this year Building magazine revealed that the six major energy firms had told ministers they would not be ready to deliver the payment mechanism for the Green Deal until “first quarter 2013”. The news comes amid concerns the Green Deal’s ‘soft launch’ and delays to its full implementation could undermine the industry, with insulation industry leaders writing to ministers warning of job losses.
Federation of Master Builders (FMB) Chief Executive Brian Berry, described the three-month delay as “disappointing”. The government predicts that the Green Deal programme could kick start £14bn of investment over the next decade and support at least 65,000 new insulation and construction jobs by 2015. “However, with the construction industry continuing to falter, we need this stimulus right away,” says Brian.
In this edition of Construction Magazine we spotlight the general confusion and doubts this postponement is causing by listening to the concerns of the construction and real estate industries.
Since 2009, The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) has co-ordinated a groundbreaking research project into the energy efficiency performance of old buildings. Fascinatingly, results have shown that traditionally constructed properties perform better than commonly supposed; find out more in this month’s Building a Green Future feature.
Meet some of the newest industry appointments in Head Hunters and get your diary and your passport ready for our digest of construction events happening around the world this month. The Big 5 takes place in Dubai and is the largest trade show for the construction industry in the Arabian Gulf. A unique event featuring around 2,000 companies from 50 countries.
Check out our round-up of some of the most exciting European construction equipment launches such as Sandvik’s Vibrocone™ – a crusher with grinding performance which changes the rules for comminution and opens the way for major energy savings. Swiss crane manufacturer Wolffkran answers the increasing global demand for luffing cranes in the lower load moment range with the new 166 B.
All this, along with profiles on some of the industry’s best performing firms and the usual round-up of UK & Ireland and World news.
Heather Campbell
Editor
