CLARE’S Green Senator has described the new national retrofitting scheme as a “game changer” for those living in fuel poverty, writes Fiona McGarry.
Róisín Garvey told The Champion the issue prompted her to enter politics in the first place, after her own personal experiences as a young mother.
On Tuesday, the Cabinet approved a scheme that aims to retrofit 500,000 homes by the end of the decade. Launching the scheme, the Green Party leader said the scheme would help reduce the cost
of living, particularly heating bills. The programme would see up to 80% of the cost of smaller insulation works met by the State.
“When I lived in a house in Ennistymon with my young son, I couldn’t afford to put the heat on,” she told The Champion.
“When I told the landlord, he pumped the walls and insulated the attic and we were never cold again. That was a game changer. This scheme is one of the reasons I got into politics in the first place. It’s 17 years since I was in that position and a lot of work has gone into this scheme thanks to the expertise of the Green Party.”
“We are one of the last countries to have such fuel inefficient homes and this scheme will be a real game changer in that respect.”
The Inagh woman also welcomed the rollout of a system of ‘one stop shops’ to provide support with retrofitting projects.
“There are 20 of these who will provide support in terms of home visits, consultations, sourcing and supervision of the work, as well as drawing down of the grant,” she said.
“There will be a full pay-back in terms of savings over the course of five to 20 years. We have never had a cent in return for all of the money spent on fossil fuels.”
Senator Garvey said Home Energy Upgrade Scheme has the potential to generate 3,000 jobs a year in the sector and that educational and upskilling opportunities are rolling out across the country.
“To date, there are five centres of excellence in terms of retraining and there is to be another for the MidWest, overseen by the Limerick Clare Education and Training Board (LCETB).
Delighted as part of the Green Team that has worked so hard towards Minister @EamonRyan announcement of unprecedented grants to make homes warmer, cheaper to heat, reduce their carbon emissions, while also creating 3,000 jobs a year. #TimeToRetrofit #GreensInGovernment pic.twitter.com/0uZz8FVhxu
— Sen. Róisín Garvey (@RoisinGarvey) February 8, 2022
The scheme offers a range of options from attic insulation to a full retrofit. For private homes, new grants will cover close to half the cost (45-51%) of a deep retrofit that will improve energy efficiency to a high B2 rating.
That means grants of more than €25,000 may be offered to individual householders. There will also be options for 80% grants for more minor works, such as insulating attics and cavity walls.
“The National Development Plan has allocated €8bn to retrofitting up to 2030,” Senator Garvey added.
“This should give the construction sector the confidence it needs to invest in staff and equipment in order to do this work.
“The scheme also sends out a strong signal to workers and school leavers that there will be steady work and new opportunities in this sector over the coming decade.
“Further to this, €22 million has been allocated for the Green Skills Action Programme, by the Department of Further and Higher Education in Budget 2022. €17m of this relates to retrofit and NZEB (near zero energy buildings) skills.”