Dr. Brian Motherway:

We think every local authority should have a renewable energy strategy in place for its county, region or locality in order that there is transparency on where renewable energy projects can be sited, the principles that apply and the very important issues of environmental assessment, public involvement and so on. We see that a number of counties have taken this on board and become better places for debates on wind energy,and we would encourage others to do so.

Many construction firms realise that retrofit presents an opportunity and until a few years ago all construction was new build, but in other economies there is a mix of new build and retrofit. We are seeing a reconfiguration in that direction and a number of very forward looking companies getting involved. I have come across companies that used to be called Murphy Builders and are now called Murphy Energy Builders; the more of this, the better. We work with the willing and those who want to promote themselves.

We emphasise quality a lot. We do not necessarily have the culture in small build areas, either among some of the contractors or the homeowners. Sometimes it is difficult to get homeowners to work within an environment of quality assurance, codes and standards. If there is any future in the sector beyond grants when we want it to be a self-sustaining industry, it has got to be based on quality and credibility.