The Christmas of 2015 was miserable for the 1,000 Mark Group employees in Leicester, who had just weeks earlier lost their jobs at the energy efficiency company.
The business, which was named Britains fastest growing in a prestigious listing published just two year earlier, was made redundant by David Camerons environmental flipflopping. Cameron saw himself go from hugging a husky and issuing a pledge not to cut the green crap.
A wave of state-funded schemes to help homeowners repair their homes was replaced in 2013 by the deeply flawed green agreement, which was ultimately killed off in summer 2015.
In the face of a sudden shortage of customers who could afford improvements, many companies in this sector were forced to shrink or fold. The annual number of loft insulations and cavity walls has dropped from more than 2m down to less than a tenth today.
Helping people [laid-off employees]Mark Groups chief commercial officer Bill Rumble says that allowing people to carry their personal belongings in their cars is a way to bring it home. You aren’t sure what to say when they close their boot.
It’s not rocket science, says David Adams of the UK Green Building Council who witnessed the rapid decay of the insulation industry.
If the market shrinks by three-quarters you will have to take out three quarters of your capacity. Some will close, and in a significant way they won’t rehired as activity has remained low since then.
Boris Johnson is not doing any better than Cameron. His Green Homes Grant for England was established in summer 2020, only to be cancelled six months later. It was branded a failure.
The Energy Companies Obligation system has seen upgrades rise and fall as short-term programs ended. There has been no return to pre-2013 glory.
After the UK’s energy security strategy published earlier this month, critics were critical of its ineffectiveness in addressing energy inefficiency in Britain’s homes.
Adams doesn’t see how the government will achieve this shift. Adams says that there are no policies to implement it. It’s just words.
The Italian government is paying its citizens to improve their homes. It offers 110% off the cost of installing insulation, heat pumps, solar panels, or replacing an old boiler. It has cost approximately 17.5 billion so far.
Labour has criticized the lack of action on this issue as shameful, and has offered its own pledge, estimated at 60bn over 10 year, to finance the renovation of 2m homes within the first year.
This is twice the rate even the insulation-friendly Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit(ECIU) thoughttank proposed, but Labour insists that it can be achieved with sufficient investment.
Dr Simon Cran McGreehin, ECIU, anticipates significant difficulties, not only in reanimating a industry that was badly beaten down a ten years ago and has had no food for ten years.
He says that the industry is extremely jaded and hurt by all the changes. They pulled the rug out of the industry in 2013, and laid off thousands of workers.
The industry put in a lot of effort but got no real return. To get them to grow now, it would take a long-term commitment and a program that was truly viable.
According to Prof Sir Jim McDonald of the Royal Academy of Engineering, you cannot get the staff these working days.
He estimates that there would be 30,000 skilled workers needed to retrofit buildings. Meanwhile, 60,000 technicians would be needed to install efficient heating systems in homes and offices. This would require intensive training.
According to him, the UK’s stagnating engineering skills over ten years has made it difficult for these highly technical fields to fill vacancies.
Adams believes the industry can meet the challenge, but it is tired of making empty promises for years. It would only be able to do so if there was a bold and ambitious long term strategy.
It is not necessary to have a two-year program again. They are inefficient. You have to train people, buy lots of equipment and then lay them off again.
It is difficult to understand where the insulation revolution is coming. The only new measure that is on the table is a VAT reduction of 5% to 10% on solar panels and energy efficiency materials. This is a welcome, but small-scale measure that Rishi Sunaks spring statement announced rather than the energy strategy.
James Higgins, National Insulation Association, said that this is not a gamechanger. Although the NIA supports government funding for home improvements, particularly for the most vulnerable households, it believes that more ambitious thinking is possible.
Higgins says that the big challenge is not just returning to the high levels in loft and cavity insulation that existed before Cameron’s 2013 U-turn but also the 9 million homes that could benefit more expensive solid wall insulation.
As a country, we need to look at all homes and decide what is compatible with net zero.
It’s insulation, but not just walls. There is roof space, underfloor and draft exclusion, as well as doors and windows. Retrofitting the entire house is the future, but it’s a big job.
A chart created by the Parliament’s Climate Change Committee illustrates the staggering costs of implementing the most effective measures.
It says that loft insulation is suitable for nearly 11m homes at a cost between 440 to 740 per home. This is 8bn for a 4 percent reduction in heat demand for semi-detached homes. External wall insulation can be used to reduce heating costs by 18%. However, it could cost up to 8,590 per residence or close to 65 billion.
Relationships between Sunak, Kwasi Kwarteng (business and energy minister), are strained. It is difficult to imagine the Treasury opening its purse strings for the most ambitious projects.
Insulation advocates believe there are mechanisms that could supplement direct government support and harness market forces to encourage homeowners to spend their own money.
There are two options: a sliding scale of stamp duties, where leaky homes are taxed more heavily but homeowners who make improvements within two year of purchasing a home qualify for a rebate.
Adams says that it means there is no free money. However, it encourages you to think about what you need to do.