No 10 has no immediate plans to subsidise the cost of plug-in solar panels which go on sale on Thursday, but suggested local authorities and charities would be able to do so.
The panels, which are plugged directly into a mains socket like any other device and then placed on balconies and outdoor spaces, are officially made legal on Thursday and will be stocked by major retailers priced at up to £600.
Asked by The i Paper if subsidies would be available for poorer households, energy minister Martin McCluskey appeared to leave the door open, saying there were no plans “at the moment”.
Shorts
It led to claims by poverty campaigners that the much-anticipated roll-out of plug-in solar power could “entrench the divide between people who can afford to take energy saving measures and those who must cut back on energy use due to a lack of affordability”.
