Private political meeting
Following the Glass and Glazing Federation’s attendance at the House of Commons Briefing with the Federation of Small Businesses and the Federation of Master Builders on Thursday November 3, GGF chief executive, Nigel Rees had a private meeting with Greg Barker MP, Minster of Energy and Climate Change and Lord McLean on Tuesday November 9 at the Department of Energy and Climate Change to discuss the detail of Green Deal and how it will work for the Glass and Glazing Industry.
At the meeting the debatable areas of Green Deal were discussed including:
• The Golden Rule
• The disparity in VAT ratings in energy efficient products
• The access for businesses of all sizes
• The inclusion of windows in the Government’s flagship initiative
There is a growing fear among many SMEs in the GGF membership that Green Deal business could be swallowed up by large multinationals entering the market as Green Deal providers.
However, Nigel Rees emerged from the meeting in a very positive frame of mind and said: “As small and medium sized companies are the lifeblood of the industry, Green Deal will have to be accessible to all businesses to ensure that the Government hits its target of making 14 million homes energy efficient by 2020.”
In the meeting Greg Barker understood the frustration caused by the delay in the Green Deal Consultation and informed that it is still a few weeks away, insisting that once published, the Consultation would explain how the Green Deal will work.
“Last week at the Parliamentary Briefing the Federation and the window industry were mentioned throughout the talks,” Nigel said. “The private meeting last night was an excellent direct discussion with Government that consolidates the view that the Government considers windows as an integral part of Green Deal.”
The GGF said that overall both meetings were excellent sessions with many encouraging words for the Federation and the industry from Government. They were adamant that SMEs and windows will both play major roles in Green Deal. The Consultation should iron out the detail and how Green Deal will transpire. Meanwhile, the GGF is gearing up for its Green Deal Debate on November 17 in the Midlands. At the debate, GGF members will be invited to air their views and concerns on all elements of Green Deal.
The GGF Green Deal Debate is a members only event and all members are invited to attend. If you are a GGF member and would like to attend this key event then please contact Bridie Joyce to book your place on bjoyce@ggf.org.uk or telephone 020 7939 9109
