The Federal Government has declared it will axe its Green Start program, this solar power program includes the assistance for a range of energy efficiency measures primarily for low-income Australian households.
 
Mr Greg Combet, the Minister for Climate Change, said the program, which was to have replaced the government’s watered-down Green Loans scheme by the end of 2010, could “not be implemented with satisfactory mitigation of risk.”
  
“One of the major risks associated with Round 1 of the Green Start program was a reliance on poor quality data on assessments collected under the Green Loans program. The Department found that these risks could not be mitigated to a satisfactory extent. This advice has informed the Government’s decision not to proceed with the program,” Mr Combet said.

 The current “Green Loans” program will finish on February 28, 2011 – contrary to what the name suggests; the program no longer offers interest-free and low interest loans for solar energy and other energy efficiency measures and hasn’t done so since February said Mr Combet.
   
The Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Mr Dreyfus said that “The Government remains committed to supporting effective energy efficiency measures and remains committed to assisting households — particularly low income households — to improve their energy efficiency, reduce their carbon footprint and make savings on their energy costs”.  

The $30 million earmarked for the scrapped Green Start scheme that includes a $15 million professional development scheme to assist accredited assessors further develop their professional skills and credentials will be returned back into professional development for accredited home sustainability assessors.