Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The better energy, warmer homes scheme delivers a range of energy-efficiency measures free of charge to low-income households that are vulnerable to energy poverty and it is a top priority for me. The scheme is very popular. Some 20,000 applications were received over the period from January 2022 to the end of August 2023. The scheme is delivering deeper and more complex upgrades in recent years, with the average cost of upgrades increasing to €24,000 in 2023. While more significant works deliver enhanced upgrades for homeowners, they also take a longer time per home to complete. The scheme was also impacted significantly by Covid-19, which caused a backlog.

My Department has worked with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, to increase output and reduce waiting times. The average waiting time from application to completion in the second quarter of 2023 was 19 months, a decrease from 26 months in 2022. The following actions were taken in order to reduce waiting times: increased SEAI staff for the scheme; increased budget allocation up to €148.5 million this year; and contractor, supply chain and inflation management and mitigation. Importantly, a new contractor panel for the scheme was established earlier this month with expanded capacity. It is intended that the panel will be in place for four years, with an estimated contract value of €700 million, which is a very strong signal of commitment to the market that this money is available from the State for investment. Additional funding of €264 million has also been secured for the scheme from the European Regional Development Fund and that will supplement the annual allocations over the period from now until 2027.

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