More than a tenth of companies implementing the Government’s flagship energy efficiency scheme have been banned after breaking its code of practice, ministers have admitted, raising fears thousands of homeowners may be being ripped off by dodgy tradesmen.
The Green New Deal, Green QE, would work just the same way. An orgy of barrow boys making hay. Limke that Oz scheme to insulate all houses. Billions spent to no great effect.
Therefore we need a National Green Service, mirroring the NHS. It’ll be far more efficient than the private sector because any profits are re-invested in the service and not squandered on shareholders. There’ll be no cowboy builders because they’ll all be state employees paid by the hour, not paid by results. They’ll all drive to work in electric vans, and the service will be completely free. We’ll save £billions in paperwork alone. What could possibly go wrong?
I’ve heard of this Australian fiasco – didn’t some people die a result? – but would appreciate it if somebody could point me to an up-to-date summary article to see just how badly wrong it went.
Green New Deal Rip Off? Ritchie will forgive instantly and give a ‘second chance’ citing the ‘greater good’. Just go and view his shirty shirty betrayal of the victims of child abuse in Islington. Pure.Fucking.Evil.
Shirty?! SHITTY, as in Shitty Little Man
Well, I’ll make no apologies for the industry.
The business I was involved in never advertised & lived off of existing & referred customers. My ex-partner-in-crime farmed the customer base profitably during the recent recession & continues to do so. We must be getting something right.
But the things you see left by some contractors are horrifying. Not saying their clients are much aware of it. They lack the knowledge to judge. And all completely predictable. These guys, by definition, won’t be going back. You only have your house insulated, damp proofed or double glazed the once.
It’s one of the areas I’d actually welcome some bureaucracy. These jobs should be inspected before they’re signed off for payment. But it’d have to be inspection by someone knew what they were supposed to be inspecting. Who could spot the “fast ones” pulled by the cowboys. Not much chance of that with the sort of wet-behind- the-ears job experience clipboard wielders likely to get the inspection job.
MBE, 3 works electrocuted, one, ironically died of hyperthermia while installing insulation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Commission_into_the_Home_Insulation_Program
I’d be wondering if those four deaths were out of line with the statistical probabilities of DaW for the construction industry. Which is historically high. It is a dangerous job.
Particularly in the renovation, re-purposing end. You are entering uncharted & sometimes dangerous country. At least with new-build you have some control over the hazards you’re creating.
Nope, there was no good reason for those deaths, or the house fires that occurred from bad installations. The problem was that because the government was subsiding the full cost, heaps of little companies sprung up to meet the demand. Installers were going door to door to sign people up, who mostly shrugged their shoulders and thought “well, it’s free, why not?” Their workers were basically given a day or two training and minimum wage and the dodgy owners trousered the profits.
The other effect was to pull forward jobs from future years which devastated the existing reputable industry.
@David Moore, thanks.
@bnis Am surprised that third party inspection before signing off and payment isn’t more popular, even without official mandate for it.