More than a third of the vouchers under the Government's boiler scrappage scheme, which was announced in the pre-Budget report, have been snapped up, according to figures out today. The Department of Energy and Climate Change mentioned that out of the 125,000 vouchers, 54,578 have been taken, leaving about 70,000, which are worth a total of £28m.

Some industrialists have claimed that the scheme is not so useful for those who are really in need. But the Government says that the scheme is helping households to cut their power bills, reducing carbon dioxide emissions and supporting thousands of jobs. Households with the lowest "G" rating can apply for vouchers from the Energy Saving Trust.

"The scheme is helping householders to save around £200 a year on fuel bills and reduce emissions, while helping to sustain work for the 130,000 installers and up to 25 UK-based boiler manufacturers", said Ed Miliband, Energy and Climate Change Secretary.

The Energy Saving Trust, at each of its regional advice centers, claimed that it has had nearly 400,000 calls, an average of 5,000 a day. Householders who applied for the scheme had to wait for the vouchers.

People accepting the scheme will get their money back by returning the voucher with an attached invoice to the EST and the payment would be returned within 25 working days of receipt.