Low take up on grants is a huge concern

The low number of people accessing home improvement grants in Sligo and Leitrim should be ‘ triggering alarm bells’, says Eamon Scanlon, TD.

New figures released to Fianna Fail reveal particularly low take up of government grants to upgrade homes’ insulation and energy performance across the two counties.

Deputy Scanlon explained, “These figures show massive disparities across the country in terms of the number of homes that are accessing funding to upgrade their homes.

“Getting a grant to insulate your home or install a better boiler is not only good for the environment; it can help struggling families save money on their energy costs and makes the home a more comfortable place to live, particularly for older people or people with certain respiratory and health conditions.

“I was disappointed to learn that in 2017; just 46 houses in Leitrim accessed funding under the Better Energy Homes scheme, as compared to 4,791 in Dublin. Sligo did not do much better, with only 108 houses drawing down funding under this scheme.

“These figures should be triggering alarm bells in Government Buildings- what is the point of having these grant schemes if most people are not aware of them and a result, miss out on them?”