Oral Answers to Questions

Chris Webb Excerpts

Tuesday 13th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Blair McDougall]

As has happened so often, we find ourselves rising to the Dispatch Box to answer Opposition Front Benchers’ questions about why we have not been quick enough to fix the mess that they left us. By all means criticise the speed and the scale of our ambition—we are certainly ambitious to go quicker—but the shadow Minister’s proposal is to regress to the policy of reliance on fossil fuels that got us into this mess, and does not bear any scrutiny.

[Chris Webb (Blackpool South) (Lab)]

8. What recent progress she has made on the implementation of the warm homes plan.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero (Martin McCluskey)]

The warm homes plan is already delivering in communities across our country, and last month the Secretary of State announced the devolution of that plan. Giving power to local leaders and communities to make decisions about the areas they know best is essential to upgrading homes on the scale and at the pace that we need. It is key to bringing down bills, reducing fuel poverty and creating skilled jobs.

[Chris Webb]

In Blackpool, too many families still live in cold and poorly insulated homes, and face disproportionately higher energy costs. How is the warm homes plan benefiting households in Blackpool, and what more are the Government doing to secure cheaper energy bills for my constituents? What support are they entitled to, and how can they access it?

[Martin McCluskey]

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for all the work that he is doing to champion his constituents in Blackpool South. Around 600 households in his constituency received home upgrades in 2025-26. I encourage any of his constituents who want advice on how to upgrade their home to go to gov.uk and search for energy grants—they will find information there. I will soon launch a new tool to make it even easier for people to find support.