Lib Dems fight to stop gutting of fuel poverty scheme

Seventy-one Liberal Democrats MPs, Peers and Council Group Leaders have written to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to oppose the Government's plans to gut a critical scheme allowing energy inefficient homes to access grants.    The Government is poised to remove social housing and rented accommodation from eligibility for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme and impose prescriptive measures on how improvements must be carried out. This means that even fewer homes are likely to be upgraded, particularly given the failure of the Green Homes Grant. The Liberal Democrats are calling for the cancellation of these changes to ensure that those most in need of help do not lose the opportunity to access these grants. Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Sarah Olney MP said:    “This is yet another move by the Tories to make it impossible to cut emissions from our homes and help to reduce energy bills – despite the most vulnerable in our society being the people who can benefit most. "With 30% of the UK's CO2 emissions coming from our homes and energy bills continuing to rocket, Liberal Democrats are calling for a ten-year programme to upgrade our homes, prioritising those in fuel poverty.    "As we gear up to host the monumental climate conference, COP26, at the end of the year, we need more than words from the Conservative Government. We need action.”