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1. To make it as easy as possible for people to make their homes greener Mr Benn today launched the Act on CO2 Advice Line, so that anyone, from anywhere in England can call 0800 512 012 to access a one stop shop for free, tailored, impartial advice from the Energy Saving Trust on how to reduce their carbon footprint.
On top of the advice on how to use less energy in their home, callers can now get advice on how to save water, reduce waste, green their travel, and connect to grants and offers from energy companies.
The Government is providing the Energy Saving Trust with more than £100 million over the next three years to deliver a broader programme for green homes. It will be rolled out so that in 12 months there will be a network of one stop advice centres around the country.
2. To demonstrate how communities can live a low carbon lifestyle the Green Neighbourhoods initiative will give a green makeover to up to 100 neighbourhoods in England with an aim to reduce their carbon footprints by more than 60 per cent.
Delivered by the Energy Saving Trust and backed by potentially more than £10 million over the next three years from the Government’s domestic Environmental Transformation Fund, this will call for local alliances between householders, community groups, local authorities, energy suppliers, private companies, and banks to bid for funding. To receive funding, bidders will need to join together and commit substantial levels of funding from their own resources to help transform the environmental performance of a street or local area.
3. The CERT (Carbon Emissions Reduction Target) scheme, which came into effect yesterday (1 April), doubles previous obligations on energy companies to help people make their homes more energy efficient and reduce household emissions. The total investment is estimated at around £1 billion a year for three years. Forty per cent of the work to reduce emissions will be targeted at the over 70s and people on low incomes.
It is estimated that over the next three years it will fund: