Families 'abandoned' after failure of £1.5bn green homes scheme
A £1.5 billion government scheme to help people make their homes more energy efficient was taken up by just 1,609 people across the Black Country and Staffordshire.
The Green Homes Grant scheme aimed to improve 600,000 properties across the country, including tens of thousands in the West Midlands.
But according to data released by the Liberal Dems only a small number of homes benefited from funding, which was launched in September 2020 and offered homeowners vouchers of up to £10,000 to retrofit their homes.
Across Staffordshire 499 homes benefited from measures, which included replacing old boilers and installing new wall and roof insulation and solar panels.
In Dudley work took place at 216 homes, while in Sandwell the figure was 309 and it was 268 in Walsall and 317 in Wolverhampton.
Across the region 80 per cent of the work was completed at low income households.
The scheme – which was seen as a key part of Boris Johnson's pledge to 'build back greener' – was scrapped in March after MPs had criticised its "botched implementation".
It has since been replaced with the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides support for the installation of heat pumps in homes.
Julian Donald, spokesman for Wolverhampton Lib Dems, said it was "shocking" that so few homes in the city had benefitted from the scheme.
He added: "This initiative was launched to much fanfare and was meant to help thousands of people make energy efficiency improvements to their homes.
"Instead, families are being abandoned ahead of the cold winter months at a time energy bills are soaring.
"The Government must show the UK is a global leader in tackling climate change by launching an emergency programme to insulate our homes, reduce emissions and slash heating bills.
"We need to end fuel poverty and make sure that families in Wolverhampton aren’t forced to choose between heating and eating."
A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, said the claims were "nonsense".
"Our plans will support homeowners to reduce their energy bills by improving their home energy performance, and will increase consumer choice rather than restrict it, with the Boiler Upgrade Scheme putting affordability at the heart of our efforts, making the green choice available to all."
