Mick's the man who's cutting the fuel bills of thousands of people
IT'S not every day someone single-handedly changes government policy. But a Hampshire businessman has done just that – and now thousands look set to benefit from lower fuel bills and warmer homes.
Mick Williams, the boss of Fareham heating firm Williams and Co, launched a campaign for a boiler scrappage scheme in a bid to rid homes of inefficient heating systems.
His ambitious brainwave became reality last week, when Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling announced he was to make grants of 400 available to households with clunky old boilers – along similar lines to the car scrappage scheme.
Mr Williams, of Southampton Road, Fareham, said: 'It began in May when I just blogged about this idea on the internet.
'Then I Tweeted about my blog on Twitter, and before I knew it lots of people were saying what a brilliant idea it was. Next I started a petition on the Number 10 website, and set up the Reheat Britain online campaign.
'Everyone wins out of this. I feel very proud that a local Pompey guy started this campaign, and then four or five months later it's become legislation.'
Mr William's business began with a small shop in Ernest Road, Fratton, in 1972.
Now the business is based in Fareham Industrial Estate, has 14 branches across the south, and turns over 14m every year.
Mr Williams said the government's decision seemed to have been made at the 'last minute' – the Department for Energy and Climate Change had written to him just a week before the pre-budget report to say it was not interested in the scheme.
'It is a vote-catcher. It helps British industry, unlike the car scrappage scheme, because 60 to 70 per cent of boilers are built here, but about 80 per cent of our cars come from abroad,' he said.
'I think it was done on the hoof. They thought "what's green and is a vote-catcher'', and hit on this.'
The goverment said it was still working out the details of the scrappage scheme, and does not know exactly when it will be launched.
Danny Davis, of the Chartered Institute for Plumbing and Heating Engineering, said: 'If it's successful there is likely to be more work out there for people.'
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Tuesday 22 May 2012
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