Housing Minister Nelson McCausland has announced that he has asked the Housing Executive to review their specification for the supply and fitting of double glazing.

In the Programme for Government the Northern Ireland Executive gave a commitment to improve the thermal efficiency of all Housing Executive properties by 2014/15 through the provision of double glazing. This commitment will see around 30,000 properties improved.

Minister McCausland said: "For some time I have been concerned that the Housing Executive’s specification for the supply and fitting of double glazing did not offer value for money. I have written to the Housing Executive's Chief Executive asking him to rigorously and urgently review this specification. I am particularly concerned about the requirement to remove and replaster around frames, which necessitates the payment of redecoration grants and causes inconvenience to tenants and also the specification for hinges and handles, as these are much higher than industry standards for domestic properties."

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The review will be completed urgently and will not have an impact on the target date of 2015.

The Minister said: "I am advised that there is potential for significant savings to be made, and given the pressures on government budgets this will be very welcome. I intend to ensure that we meet the Programme for Government target whilst ensuring best value for money meeting industry standards."

It is estimated that around 30,000 homes will be included in this programme, and while there may be slight delays while the Housing Executive carries out the review requested by the Minister, all homes included in the programme will remain in the programme. No tenant promised double glazing will lose out.

The Minister has asked the Housing Executive to carry out the review as a matter of urgency and to hold further double glazing installations until it is completed. However, where a current contractor has a contract in place with a supplier for the delivery of frames and cancellation would lead to nugatory expenditure, these contracts can proceed. Where the holding of contracts will cause budgetary pressures, the Minister has told the Housing Executive to give priority to advancing the heating replacement programme, which is part of the Fuel Poverty Initiative.

(CD/GK)