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| Green Deal cost £17,000 per household, says NAO | Green Deal cost £17,000 per household, says NAO |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The Green Deal - the government's flagship energy-saving programme - cost taxpayers £17,000 for each home that was improved, a watchdog has found. | The Green Deal - the government's flagship energy-saving programme - cost taxpayers £17,000 for each home that was improved, a watchdog has found. |
| The National Audit Office (NAO) concluded that "the Green Deal has not therefore been value for money". | The National Audit Office (NAO) concluded that "the Green Deal has not therefore been value for money". |
| Under the scheme, householders were encouraged to take out loans to pay for measures such as insulation or double-glazing. | Under the scheme, householders were encouraged to take out loans to pay for measures such as insulation or double-glazing. |
| But only 14,000 households took up the offer, well below expectations. | But only 14,000 households took up the offer, well below expectations. |
| The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) spent £240m on the programme, which ran between 2013 and July 2015. | The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) spent £240m on the programme, which ran between 2013 and July 2015. |
| But it did not test it with consumers beforehand, said the NAO, and the scheme saved "negligible" amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2). | But it did not test it with consumers beforehand, said the NAO, and the scheme saved "negligible" amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2). |
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| The NAO report said the parallel Energy Company Obligation (ECO) programme also increased costs for energy suppliers, and so put up household bills. | The NAO report said the parallel Energy Company Obligation (ECO) programme also increased costs for energy suppliers, and so put up household bills. |
| "The Department of Energy and Climate Change's ambitious aim to encourage households to pay for measures looked good on paper, as it would have reduced the financial burden of improvements on all energy consumers," said Amyas Morse, head of the NAO. | "The Department of Energy and Climate Change's ambitious aim to encourage households to pay for measures looked good on paper, as it would have reduced the financial burden of improvements on all energy consumers," said Amyas Morse, head of the NAO. |
| "But in practice, its Green Deal design not only failed to deliver any meaningful benefit, it increased suppliers' costs - and therefore energy bills - in meeting their obligations through the ECO scheme." | "But in practice, its Green Deal design not only failed to deliver any meaningful benefit, it increased suppliers' costs - and therefore energy bills - in meeting their obligations through the ECO scheme." |
| The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) said it was now harder to make improvements in energy efficiency, as earlier schemes had tackled the easiest changes. | |
| It said the ECO scheme would take £6.2bn off the bills of some of the most vulnerable households over the course of their lifetimes. |