When celebrities and government collide...

First it was Jamie Oliver and school meals. Now it's Kevin Mcloud and home insultation, working with the Energy Saving Trust which is, like the Carbon Trust, governmentspeak for DEFRA.

"If the Government is serious about tackling climate change, help must be given to homeowners on every street in Britain to green their homes.”

The Great British Refurb Campaign is supported by the Energy Saving Trust, Grand Designs magazine, UK Green Building Council, and WWF-UK. Thousands of homeowners have already added their name to a petition calling upon the Prime Minister to make it easier, more affordable, and more attractive to go green at home.

Affordable and attractive to whom? I'm sure non-homeowners are delighted to pay more tax.

This petition will be delivered to No 10 Downing Street later this week and is well timed to coincide with the Government’s latest announcement on reducing the UK’s energy demands.

Yes, that would be the Greener Living Fund and such...

Defra has launched a new fund to promote greener living. Over £6 million is being made available to support both projects and programmes by national delivery partners between November 2008 and March 2011. The fund will offer 2 year funding to a small number of national delivery partners. Starting with a bidding phase in 2008, its main delivery phase will run between April 2009 to March 2011 and it will complement other initiatives under the `Act on CO2' banner.

Eligibility criteria:

To secure funding, applicants will need to draw up and have the ability and reach to implement programmes that influence pro-environmental behaviours in the wider population. The assessment criteria will include evidence of a clear understanding of the target audience, the potential to change behaviour and the approaches which may be adopted to engage them and enable more sustainable living. In their proposals, applicants will need to demonstrate that they have the ability and reach to influence behavioural change at a grass roots level. Additionally, we hope that our funding will enable them to leverage support from elsewhere, to further greener living ideas.

Celebrities. Where would we be without them? And again, why is the government lobbying itself?