Environmental Projects

Lord Taylor of Goss Moor Excerpts

Thursday 2nd July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

We remain completely committed to taking all the necessary action to improve the energy efficiency of the UK’s buildings, delivering a UK economy that is stronger, cleaner, more sustainable and more resilient after the crisis.

[Lord Taylor of Goss Moor (LD) [V]]

I draw attention to my interests in sustainable development and renewables, as in the register. The Minister is aware that it is vastly more expensive to retrofit old homes than to build new ones to the right standards in the first place, but the new standards for homes—the elimination of gas, for example—will not come in until 2025. As part of the programme to get people back to work, would it not make sense to make sure that the homes we build are built to the highest standards in the first place and that those standards are brought forward using proven technologies, as some councils are already doing?

[Lord Callanan]

That is an important issue. We keep things such as the building regulations under constant review, but we need to proceed at a pace that the building industry can cope with and that consumers will accept.