Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to incorporate references to (1) solar gain and (2) solar shading, in their guidance on the retrofitting of older homes in order to mitigate the effects of overheating.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Part O of the Building Regulations was introduced in 2021 to reduce the risk of overheating in new residential buildings . Part O came into effect in June 2022. This means that new residential buildings must now be designed in such a way as to reduce overheating. This requirement is met by designing and constructing the building to limit unwanted solar gains in summer (including through shading) and by providing an adequate means of removing excess heat.
In existing residential buildings, insulation measures can help reduce risks of overheating, if correctly installed and with adequate ventilation. This is why all energy efficiency measures installed under current government funded schemes require installers to be Trustmark registered and measures must also be installed in accordance with the Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2030 and PAS 2035 standards, protecting the consumer against poor workmanship. PAS 2035/2030 requires a whole house approach to home retrofit projects and ensures that the risks of unintended consequences, such as mould and condensation due to poor ventilation, are minimised.
We are also considering the issues surrounding overheating in homes created through a material change of use (i.e. homes created by converting another building type, such as an office block) and whether changes to the Building Regulations are appropriate. We intend to consult on our approach to overheating in these homes as part of our consultation on the Future Homes Standard.
Details of further work to determine risk and guide interventions related to overheating, including in existing homes, is set out in the Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3) report, published in July 2023.
Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to incorporate references to (1) solar gain and (2) solar shading, in the design requirements for new-build homes in order to mitigate the effects of overheating.
Answered by Baroness Penn - Minister on Leave (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State)
Part O of the Building Regulations was introduced in 2021 to reduce the risk of overheating in new residential buildings . Part O came into effect in June 2022. This means that new residential buildings must now be designed in such a way as to reduce overheating. This requirement is met by designing and constructing the building to limit unwanted solar gains in summer (including through shading) and by providing an adequate means of removing excess heat.
In existing residential buildings, insulation measures can help reduce risks of overheating, if correctly installed and with adequate ventilation. This is why all energy efficiency measures installed under current government funded schemes require installers to be Trustmark registered and measures must also be installed in accordance with the Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2030 and PAS 2035 standards, protecting the consumer against poor workmanship. PAS 2035/2030 requires a whole house approach to home retrofit projects and ensures that the risks of unintended consequences, such as mould and condensation due to poor ventilation, are minimised.
We are also considering the issues surrounding overheating in homes created through a material change of use (i.e. homes created by converting another building type, such as an office block) and whether changes to the Building Regulations are appropriate. We intend to consult on our approach to overheating in these homes as part of our consultation on the Future Homes Standard.
Details of further work to determine risk and guide interventions related to overheating, including in existing homes, is set out in the Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3) report, published in July 2023.
Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will set out detailed plans for the (1) size, (2) geographical distribution, and (3) administrative implementation, of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Answered by Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist
Government has committed to creating a UK Shared Prosperity Fund to succeed European structural funds and bind together the whole of the United Kingdom, tackling inequality and deprivation in each of our four nations. The 2019 Conservative Manifesto committed to targeting the UK Shared Prosperity Fund at the UK’s specific needs, and at a minimum match the size of European structural funds in each nation.
Final decisions on the design of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will be taken after a cross-Governmental Spending Review. In the meantime, we will continue to work closely with interested parties whilst developing the fund.
Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when they intend to change the annual indexing of park home pitch fees from the Retail Price Index to the Consumer Price Index.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government will introduce the primary legislation necessary to change the inflationary index that is used to review pitch fees for park homes from the Retail Price Index (RPI) to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as soon as parliamentary time allows
This commitment is part of a wider package of measures designed to improve protections for park home residents and increase professionalism in the sector.
Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to make it mandatory for new build residential, and commercial properties to be zero carbon; and if so, when.
Answered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth
The Building Regulations already require very energy efficient new homes. The minimum energy performance standard for new homes has been increased by over 30 per cent since 2010.
The next steps for reviewing these requirements are set out in the Government's Clean Growth Strategy, which sets out our intention to consult on strengthening energy requirements where cost effective, affordable, safe and practical to do so.
The Prime Minister has set out the Government's ambition as part of a ‘Clean Growth Mission’ under the UK’s Industrial Strategy to halve the total use of energy in new homes compared to today’s standards for new build. This will consider what role energy performance requirements will have to support a wider approach alongside innovation including more efficient appliances, smart appliances, smart controls and modern methods of construction.
Asked by: Lord Teverson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to reconsider their decision to withdraw financial support for the Cornish language, and if not, under what circumstances they next intend to do so.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Cornwall Council has a core spending power of £1.7 billion over the next four years, from which they can allocate the necessary resources to sustain and grow the use of the Cornish Language, if that is what local people want to see.