Under this plan, any householder will be able to spend up to £10,000 making their home more energy efficient, funded by the savings from future gas and electricity bills.

The goal is to renovate the entire housing stock, curbing demand for energy. The government hopes that 14m households will qualify for this overhaul over the next 10 years, with all 25m homes in the UK eventually being upgraded.

But energy suppliers rank among the most distrusted organisations in the country. Before people are willing to allow cavity wall and loft insulation to be installed in their homes, the government acknowledges that they need to be convinced about savings. They also need to trust those who would do the work inside their homes.

Greg Barker, the climate change minister, announced on Thursday a Green Deal code designed to ensure that energy efficiency work is carried out to a high standard. An independent body will be appointed to accredit all those who carry out the renovations.

He said: “The Green Deal will be the biggest home improvement programme since the second world war, shifting our outdated draughty homes from the past into the future, so it’s vital people can trust it. I have heard too many cases of shoddy workmanship or dodgy technology from government schemes in the past, so from day one there will be strict rules about standards, information will be readily available and there will be a proper route for complaints.”

The energy bill before the House of Commons will formally establish the Green Deal and the scheme should begin operating next year.

Ann Robinson, director of consumer policy at USwitch, said public suspicion of energy companies threatened the plan. “If they want people to take this up next year, they’re going to have to build that confidence,” she said. “Whenever we do any customer surveys, we find that energy companies are, if not the worst in terms of trust, they’re always about number two.” Ms Robinson said it would be important to include “trusted brands” in the energy efficiency work. The government aims to involve Marks and Spencer, B&Q and Tesco in marketing the Green Deal and providing finance.

As well as ensuring that only accredited workers install energy efficiency measures, householders must also be convinced that they would pay nothing upfront. The full cost would be repaid from savings from energy bills.

Given that energy bills are likely to rise over the next decade, Ms Robinson pointed out that these savings would probably be considerable. “As energy prices go up, that margin of being better off is going to increase,” she said.