‘Bonkers’ building rules for chop

Proposals to require householders to invest in energy-efficiency measures when carrying out improvements to their homes looked certain to be dropped, after a Downing Street source said Prime Minister David Cameron regarded them as “bonkers”.

By The Newsroom

Published 18th Apr 2012, 07:00 BST

The development brought tensions within the coalition to the surface, with Conservative MP Stewart Jackson blaming the “unpopular and wacky” idea on Liberal Democrat partners.

The Department for Communities and Local Government said it would consider responses to a consultation on proposed changes to building regulations, which would require people building extensions or converting lofts to spend up to 10 per cent of the value of the project on energy efficiency improvements.

But the plan looked dead after a source close to Mr Cameron made clear he did not believe it should have been included in the consultation. “This is a bonkers proposal and the Prime Minister frankly doesn’t understand how it got into the consultation document.”