I fully endorse the WWF’s call for every house in Scotland to be given free loft and wall insulation to help meet the targets for cutting carbon emissions laid down in the Climate Change (Scotland) Act

The Scottish government’s figures show that the cost of having its housing stock achieve the intended 42% cut in emissions by 2020 would be £1.6bn a year. In this context, the £544m price tag for insulating lofts and walls in Scotland’s 2.3 million homes over the next 10 years seems modest.

Indeed, I would like to see the Scottish government go a step further and offer realistic incentives for businesses to improve the energy efficiency of offices and commercial premises. This would not just be a big win for the environment. It will help to sustain many construction jobs and apprenticeships and equip our industry with the green skills to make the transition to the low carbon economy of the future.

Michael Levack, chief executive, Scottish Building Federation

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