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Money for feed-in tariffs 'should have been spent on cheap double glazing'

The government should spend more money on subsidising double glazing, George Monbiot suggests Feed-in tariffs are to begin next month with £8.6 billion of government funding - money which would have been better spent on installing cheap double glazing in the homes of those in fuel poverty, a climate change journalist has claimed.

The money proposed for the feed-in tariffs would have been better set aside for the installation of cheap double glazing, which could have cut both fuel poverty and emissions, according to a politics and climate change expert.

In a piece for the Guardian, journalist George Monbiot wrote that £8.6 billion is soon to be shifted from the poor to the middle classes as part of the feed-in tariffs that will see electricity companies paying people for the power they produce at home.

The government expects a loss on this scheme of £8.2 billion, but is still going ahead regardless, Mr Monbiot wrote.

He explained that solar panels are the best energy-producing technology for homeowners to install under the new scheme, as they will deliver the greatest amount of return.

But he adds that they are expensive and not everyone can afford such an investment up front.

"Had this money been spent instead on insulation or double glazing, it could have helped relieve fuel poverty at the same time as cutting emissions," Mr Monboit claimed.

According to the Energy Saving Trust, cheap double glazing can cut heat loss through windows by half and can save the average household around £135 a year on bills.

Posted by Sarah GowerADNFCR-2394-ID-19646657-ADNFCR

Article Added: 02/03/2010 18:24:37
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