Negotiations over new cabinet continue
Following yesterday’s negotiations over the forming of a new government with the Social Democrats, Jan Fisher will meet today with the ODS and the Green Party. Meetings will take place today at Hrzánský Palace with Green Party Chairman Martin Bursik at 10am followed in the afternoon by leader of the ODS Mirek Topolánek.
Following last night’s meeting with Jan Fischer, ČSSD Chairman Jiří Paroubek has already, announced his suggestions for seven members of the new government.
The final make-up of the new administrative cabinet of experts is expected to be finalised over the next week.
Huge interest in government grants for homeowner environmental improvements
The state will start contributing billions of crowns this year for the insulation of homes and apartment buildings and to ecological heating.
Green Savings, the biggest ecologic program for households in the Czech Republic will be introduced today by Environment Minister Martin Bursík and it now seems certain that the State Environment Fund will spend billions on it.
An investigation by company Factum Invenio carried out before the programme was announced indicates that tens of thousands of households could have interest in the fund. Families want to save on heating and therefore plan on insulating their homes or at least replacing windows. For many of them however such improvements are too expensive.
The state fund should decrease the cost of insulation by hundreds of thousands of crowns. In this year alone 10 billion crowns should go to households from the Green Savings fund and a further 15 billion over the next 3 years.
Up to 220 000 per house
Factum Invenio in February this year surveyed 1162 owners of family houses and 251 owners or managers of apartment buildings.
‘Over the next 4 years 42% of house owners are planning energy saving improvements. In the case of apartment buildings that figure is a further 3% higher,’ stated Factum Invenio in the summary of their report.
For 63% of house owners and 55% of apartment building owners the greatest barrier to insulating the whole building, or at least replacing windows and doors, is the high cost involved.
The Green Savings program is counting on the state to pay households up to half of the cost of insulating a family home to a maximum of 220 thousand crowns.
‘We’ve calculated the usual amount of assistance to be around 35%,’ said Petr Štěpánek, director of the state fund for the environment.
When Factum Invenio asked owners of houses and apartment buildings what state ecology grants should be available for, most of those questioned supported insulation.
Amongst owners of family houses 67% answered that the fund should support insulation whilst amongst owners of apartment buildings the figure was a further 9% higher.
‘In second place was the use of grants for replacement of windows or doors,’ stated the agency. ‘A fifth of owners of family houses would welcome grants for solar panels.’
