The Government has confirmed it will spend £2.9 million on marketing the Green Deal when it launches in earnest on January 28.

Full details of the communications campaign have yet to be unveiled, but it will focus primarily on householders and will include digital and traditional channels, according to a spokesperson at the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).

Officials at DECC had to get a special exemption from the Government’s freeze on marketing spend to secure the £2.9 million pot of money and the department said it would be used to "build understanding and trust" in the Green Deal.

The future of the Government's flagship Green Deal programme hangs in the balance after an intensifying tax dispute with the European Commission.

Brussels bureaucrats have warned Whitehall to overhaul the tax rules regarding energy-saving materials or face the prospect of massive fines at the European Court of Justice.

Currently, the UK Treasury levies a reduced rate of five per cent VAT for insulation materials for walls, ceilings, floors and water tanks. However, the full 20 per cent rate of VAT still applies to energy efficient windows and doors.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced the launch of the Green Building Information Gateway. Coined GBIG, the web-based tool is designed to help accelerate market transformation by providing greater transparency and understanding of the green dimensions of the built environment.

GBIG provides a transparent view of places, projects, collections and credits, detailing the actions and activities of LEED building owners and project teams over time. The tool provides maps, analytics and insights that reveal trends, patterns and processes in green building practice.

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) announced winners of the 8th Annual Design & Build with FSC Awards at a special reception connected to Greenbuild 2012.

The winners include a “Living Building” that is the first heavy timber commercial building in Seattle since the 1920s, a traditional West Indian cottage in the U.S. Virgin Islands and wood tables manufactured for Cisco Systems’ telecommunications products. The winning projects were chosen based on extensive use of FSC-certified wood, impact on the marketplace, broader contributions to sustainability, and aesthetics.