The Green retrofitting programme is flying.

The Government has supported over 34,000 retrofits up to the end of September this year – up 112% on the same period last year. Over the same period 47,000 applications have been processed – which means that many more homes will be made warmer and more efficient by the end of the year.

The target overall for 2023 was to support over 37,000 home energy upgrades. On current performance, this target is going to be smashed, with a really healthy pipeline of demand in the wings.

So far this year, over 4,100 low income homes have also been provided with 100% free retrofits – up 34% on the same period last year. And next year, we will go even further.

This year alone, over €350 million has been allocated to home retrofits. An additional €87m has been provided for local authority retrofit programmes. In total, over half of the overall fund is for free retrofits for low-income households and local authority housing.

This is something that I am particularly proud of.

It is important that we make homes at greatest risk of energy poverty warmer and cheaper to heat. And just a few weeks ago, we signed an agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) on a new low-cost loan for retrofitting – the first of its kind in Europe. This will make it much easier for people above the eligibility threshold for a free energy upgrade but without all the means to fund the retrofits themselves, to upgrade their homes.

We have designed the loans with the needs of homeowners in mind. Access will be simple and speedy with an emphasis on reducing the administrative burden on homeowners accessing both loans and grants. This means that you can concentrate more on making your home warmer and more economical, not on the paperwork.