Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Energy Transition Council has met since COP26; and if so, which nations attended.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Transition Council (ETC) met on Tuesday 24 May 2022, for its fifth Ministerial dialogue, chaired by the UK. Egypt, Kenya, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Indonesia, Morocco, Laos PDR, Philippines and Germany were represented at Ministerial and senior official level.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress the Energy Transition Council has made towards its objectives.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Transition Council’s objective is to support countries to accelerate their clean energy transition, including through national and Ministerial dialogues. The Council has mobilised assistance in the eleven Energy Transition Council partner countries including through its Rapid Response Facility, which is already responding to over twenty requests, with additional requests in the pipeline for 2022. As a result of these efforts, the Government has seen partner countries commit to raising ambition in their clean energy transition, including through declarations at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to promote wider membership of the Energy Transition Council, in particular to include more African nations.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Energy Transition Council currently works with eleven developing partner countries across Asia and Africa, including Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, and Kenya to accelerate their clean energy transitions. The Council’s mandate will continue to 2025, supported by a strategic partnership with the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, which will allow for the expansion of the Council’s work and for wider membership, including from African nations.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the benefits of including all energy-saving technologies that reduce the cost of heating or hot water into the Energy Company Obligation (ECO).
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The targets for the current iteration of ECO, ECO4, are based on the Home Heating and Cost Reduction Obligation (HHCRO) powers set out in the Electricity Act 1989, Section 41B, and Gas Act 1986, Section 33BD. This allows Government to set a target for the promotion of measures for reducing the cost to individuals of heating their homes. Therefore, measures which do not result in space heating savings are not within scope.
ECO4 is focused on installing energy-efficiency and heating measures in lower income and otherwise vulnerable households across Great Britain. The scheme will run from 2022 to 2026 and is valued at £1 billion a year. This is predicted to help an extra 450,000 families with green measures that reduce the cost of heating such as insulation.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of water efficiency measures in helping achieve the government’s net zero aims.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
As outlined in the Energy-related Products Policy Framework, the Government estimates 0.9 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent could be saved over Carbon Budget 5 through consumer behaviour change encouraged by a mandatory water label on taps and non-electric showers.
Defra has already committed to mandatory water labelling on taps and non-electric showers, among other products, and is working closely with BEIS officials to explore the inclusion of energy efficiency information on the labels in order to best support consumers to make energy- and money-saving purchases.
The Government will continue to explore the feasibility of other efficiency measures for these products.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with energy suppliers about the practice of automatically imposing rises in direct debits without prior discussion with consumers.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Ministers continue to engage extensively with Ofgem and senior representatives in the energy sector to understand the ongoing situation around rising energy prices. If customers do not receive prior notice of changes to their direct debit payments, they can make a complaint to their energy supplier.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to require energy suppliers to consult with vulnerable customers before increasing their direct debit payments.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
All suppliers must take all reasonable steps to ensure that customers’ direct debit payments are based on the best available information. Energy suppliers typically review their customers’ direct debit arrangements twice a year based on an actual meter reading to ensure payments are set at a level to avoid large credit or debit balances. A supplier should explain the reasons for changes made to a customer’s direct debit arrangement with 10 days advance notice before the next payment is taken. The customer may challenge a proposed increase and renegotiate the direct debit payment level.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take, if any, to protect disabled customers from the impact of rising energy costs.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Consumers in vulnerable situations due to health issues are protected by the energy price cap if they are on a supplier’s default or standard variable tariff. They will also receive £200 discount on their electricity bill this autumn, as part of the Government’s package worth £9.1 billion to help domestic households with rising energy bills.
The Government will continue to support eligible vulnerable and low-income households through the Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments. From April, local authorities will receive another £500 million for the Household Support Fund to provide help to the most in need.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have considered research published by the Environmental Technologies & Resource Efficiency Support Service (EnTRESS), at the University of Wolverhampton, concerning any cost and efficiency advantages infrared heating has over other alternatives to decarbonising home heating.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
BEIS is gathering evidence on the performance of infrared heating to account for recent developments in infrared heating technology, data management and intelligent control systems. The report published by the Environmental Technologies & Resource Efficiency Support Service (EnTRESS) will be considered as part of this evaluation.
Asked by: Lord Oates (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the capacity of infrared heating to support their aim of decarbonising homes.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government anticipates that heat pumps will be the principal means of decarbonising heat in buildings through electrification over the next decade and beyond. Evidence to date suggests that there may be a role for alternative electric heating technologies, such as infrared heating, but this should be limited to specific use cases, such as small flats with low heat demand.