In yesterday’s Summer Economic Update from the chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, the government announced a £3bn green investment package to support around 140,000 green jobs and upgrade buildings and reduce emissions. While the temporary stamp duty cut was the top headline for the property industry yesterday, the chancellor’s green investment package is set to create thousands of jobs for tradespeople in a bid to help get Britain building.

As part of this, homeowners and landlords in England will be able to apply for vouchers from a £2bn Green Homes Grant scheme this year to pay for green improvements such as loft, wall and floor insulation, that could save some households hundreds of pounds a year on their energy bills. Mary-Anne Bowring, group managing director at Ringley and creator of automated lettings platform, PlanetRent, claimed that the UK’s old housing stock was not just bad for the environment, but bad for our health too, adding that too many properties suffered from problems with damp and cold. “It is important the government's voucher scheme covers renters, especially as homes in the private rented sector tend to be older,” she noted.