David Crausby

Storage heaters can be replaced under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO), specifically Affordable Warmth, the part of the scheme aimed at low income and vulnerable households. Government is currently consulting on ECO for 2018-22 which would see the whole scheme focused on low income and vulnerable households and we are proposing that storage heaters could be replaced in a wider set of circumstances.

The Government is considering the responses to this consultation, and will respond in due course.

Since 2013, and estimated 1,321,000 unique homes have received insulation measures through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) and Green Deal schemes. The annual breakdown is shown in the table below.

Table: Number of homes insulated through ECO and Green Deal: 2013 – July 2017.

*Around 15,000 homes (1%) were insulated by multiple schemes since 2013. This double counting has been removed from the total homes insulated.

Prior to 2013, data are not available to estimate the number of unique homes receiving insulation measures. However, the number of professionally installed measures for cavity wall insulation, loft insulation and solid wall insulation through Government schemes since 2010 are shown in the table below. In addition to schemes shown above the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) that closed in 2012 is included.

Table: Number of selected professionally installed insulation measures through CERT, ECO and Green Deal: 2010 – July 2017.

The following table provides additional breakdown of the percentage of homes rated EPC band D or below by: (a) owner-occupied, (b) private-rented and (c) social sector housing. As before, these data are calculated based on weighted English Housing Survey data:

Table: Number of homes (000’s) in England rated EPC band D or below split by tenure

Note: totals may not add to 100 due to rounding

The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property)(England and Wales) Regulations 2015 require that, subject to certain exemptions, domestic and non-domestic private rented sector landlords improve any Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) F or G rated properties they rent to a minimum of EPC band E from April 2018. To reach this standard, landlords of poorly rated properties will be required to install energy efficiency measures relevant to those properties, which could include insulation.

The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) supports the installation of energy efficiency measures in both private rented housing and social rented housing. From January 2013 to June 2017, energy efficiency measures were installed in 242,348 private rented homes and 223,046 social rented homes under ECO.

The Government will also look at a long term trajectory for energy performance standards across the private rented sector, with the aim of as many private rented homes as possible being upgraded to EPC Band C by 2030, where practical, cost-effective and affordable. We will consider options with a view to consulting in 2018. In addition, the Government will also look at how social housing can meet similar standards on the same timetable. When looking at this we will need to take account of the findings of the independent public inquiry into the fire at Grenfell Tower and the Government’s separate work looking at wider social housing policy issues.

The Industrial Strategy is a framework for Government to work in partnership with industry, academia, civil society and business over the years ahead to build on the UK’s strengths, make more of our untapped potential and create a more productive economy that works for everyone across the UK.

Our ambition is, therefore, for the Industrial Strategy to support businesses from all sectors of the economy to prosper and grow, including in the retail sector.

The Department does not hold this information as central Government funds the umbrella organisation, Citizens Advice, but not individual bureaux. We have obtained the following information from Citizens Advice:

• There are currently 292 local members (legal entities, formally known as CAB). There were 360 members at April 2012, representing a reduction of 68.

• Citizens Advice has noted this reduction results mainly from a number of mergers of legal entities to provide efficiencies so that more resources can be targeted to frontline advice.

• Generally across England and Wales, the number of access points for advice remains largely the same – 2,700 community locations, including GP surgeries, libraries and courts.

• There have been 9 closures since April 2012, resulting from either the local service being no longer financially viable due to financial mismanagement, failure to address decreasing funding or the loss of a competitive tendering process.

• In all cases where a closure has been necessary, Citizens Advice strive to continue to provide face to face services in those areas, albeit sometimes this has had to be reduced.

In England, approximately 2.36 million households spent more than 10 per cent of their full income on fuel bills in 2015. This is around 10.4 per cent of all households. In the North West, approximately 0.41 million households (13.4 per cent), spent more than 10 per cent of their full income on fuel bills. Data is only available at the regional level and is not broken down further to Local Authority level.

Fuel poverty is based on the low income high costs (LIHC) indicator. In 2015, around 2.50 million households were in fuel poverty. This is around 11.0 per cent of all households. In the Bolton Metropolitan Borough, 14,800 households (12.5 per cent) were considered fuel poor. In the Bolton North East constituency, 5,400 households (12.8 per cent) were considered fuel poor.

These figures are based on the fuel poverty dataset. The methodology for this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fuel-poverty-statistics-methodology-handbook

The sub-regional figures can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/sub-regional-fuel-poverty-data-2017

This is based on data the English Housing Survey which is run by the Department for Communities and Local Government. The methodology for this can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/english-housing-survey-guidance-and-methodology

Larger domestic energy suppliers have been required to provide assistance to households under a number of supplier statutory obligations in the last five years. The Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT), the Community Energy Savings Programme^[1] (CESP) and the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) have required energy suppliers to provide energy efficiency measures to homes. CESP required measures to be installed in low income areas^[2]. Under CERT at least 40% of carbon savings had to be delivered in homes of a Priority Group of low income and vulnerable households. ECO has had an element aimed primarily at low income and vulnerable households and from April this year that was increased to 70% of the obligation. In addition, the Warm Home Discount (WHD) primarily requires energy bill rebates to be made to low income and vulnerable households each winter.

Spending under ECO and Warm Home Discount

Although energy suppliers continued spending under CERT until 2012/13 and CESP until 2013/14 we do not have the data on the proportion of spending which went to low income households.

Energy suppliers have the ability to determine how to meet their obligations over designated time periods rather than following set delivery in any single year. They can frontload or backload delivery which affects the spend profile.

Energy suppliers have also provided direct financial and other assistance to their low income customers over the past five years but we do not have data on the value of that assistance.

[1] CESP was also an obligation on large electricity generators.

[2] The legislation required measures to be delivered in specific geographical areas (Lower Super Output Areas in England and Wales, and Data Zones in Scotland) selected using the Income Domain of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) in England, Scotland and Wales. In England the lowest 10% of areas ranked in the IMD qualified and in Scotland and Wales the lowest 15% qualified.

[3] Source: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/social-programmes/warm-home-discount/warm-home-discount-reports-and-statistics

[4] ECO started in January 2013. Spending by quarter: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/ofgem-publications/58425/certfinalreport2013300413pdf

[5] The Affordable Warmth Group is made up of low income and vulnerable households.

Final answer to PQ 16545

The Insolvency Service does not produce UK-level statistics on insolvencies: statistics are presented separately for England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland because of differences in legislation and policy.

Statistics showing the number of bankruptcies, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements are provided for each area since 2012 and can be found in the tables below. Bankruptcy, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements apply to individuals only; regional breakdowns for the number of company insolvencies are not currently available.

The Insolvency Service compiles its regional Insolvency numbers statistics on a calendar year basis, therefore financial year totals are not available. Statistics for the calendar year 2016 were published on 13 July 2017, and statistics for 2017 are due to be published in July 2018.

Table1: Breakdown of total individual insolvencies, Bolton, 2012 to 2016¹

Table 2: Breakdown of total individual insolvencies, England and Wales, 2012 to 2016

Table 3: Breakdown of total individual insolvencies, Scotland, 2012 to 2016

Source: Accountant in Bankruptcy.

¹ On 1 April 2008, Part 1 of the Bankruptcy and Diligence etc. (Scotland) Act 2007 came into force making significant changes to some aspects of sequestration (bankruptcy), debt relief and debt enforcement in Scotland. This included the introduction of the new route into bankruptcy for people with low income and low assets (LILA). Of the number or sequestrations, individuals who meet LILA criteria are shown in brackets.

² On 1 April 2015, part of the Bankruptcy and Debt Advice (Scotland) Act came into force making significant changes to some aspects of sequestration (bankruptcy). This included the introduction of the Minimal Asset Process (MAP), which replaced the LILA route into sequestration; mandatory debt advice for people seeking statutory debt relief; a new online process for applying for sequestration; and an additional year for people to make contributions to repaying their debts (increasing from three years to four, in line with protected trust deeds).

Table 4: Breakdown of total individual insolvencies, Northern Ireland, 2012 to 2016

Source: Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland.

It should be noted that these figures do not account for any changes in the base population over time. Using the rate of bankruptcies per 10,000 adults allows for a like-for-like comparison across years.

Headline figures for insolvencies in England and Wales can be found in the quarterly Insolvency Statistics release, a National Statistics publication. Figures for January-March 2017 were published on 28 April 2017, and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/insolvency-statistics-january-to-march-2017

Annual numbers and rates of insolvencies by region for 2000-2016 are available in the Individual Insolvencies by Location, Age and Gender publication

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/individual-insolvencies-by-location-age-and-gender-england-and-wales-2016.

Between 2013-2016, The Premier League invested £183 million in total into community school sport, delivering participation programmes and creating new public sports facilities.

In 2016, DCMS agreed that grassroots football will benefit from at least £100 million a year on investment from the Premier League – double the previous commitment. This runs to 2019 and is set out in “Sporting Future” the Government’s strategy for sport.

The £100m a season currently goes to a range of activities, including investment in facilities, school sport, projects that encourage sports participation and tackle social health and wellbeing issues, that support disability and girls football, diversity and anti-racism programmes, player welfare and to organisations that give a voice to fans.

Further information on all Premier League grassroots activities can be found in their published annual report ‘available at www.premierleague.com/this-is-pl/the-communities

DCMS Ministers continue to meet with the EPL and FA on a regular basis to discuss a variety of matters, including to ensure that the grassroots benefits from a healthy proportion of the broadcast rights revenue generated by the Premier League and any commercial surplus made by the FA.

Between 2013-2016, The Premier League invested £183 million in total into community school sport, delivering participation programmes and creating new public sports facilities.

In 2016, DCMS agreed that grassroots football will benefit from at least £100 million a year on investment from the Premier League – double the previous commitment. This runs to 2019 and is set out in “Sporting Future” the Government’s strategy for sport.

The £100m a season currently goes to a range of activities, including investment in facilities, school sport, projects that encourage sports participation and tackle social health and wellbeing issues, that support disability and girls football, diversity and anti-racism programmes, player welfare and to organisations that give a voice to fans.

Further information on all Premier League grassroots activities can be found in their published annual report ‘available at www.premierleague.com/this-is-pl/the-communities

DCMS Ministers continue to meet with the EPL and FA on a regular basis to discuss a variety of matters, including to ensure that the grassroots benefits from a healthy proportion of the broadcast rights revenue generated by the Premier League and any commercial surplus made by the FA.

Between 2013-2016, The Premier League invested £183 million in total into community school sport, delivering participation programmes and creating new public sports facilities.

In 2016, DCMS agreed that grassroots football will benefit from at least £100 million a year on investment from the Premier League – double the previous commitment. This runs to 2019 and is set out in “Sporting Future” the Government’s strategy for sport.

The £100m a season currently goes to a range of activities, including investment in facilities, school sport, projects that encourage sports participation and tackle social health and wellbeing issues, that support disability and girls football, diversity and anti-racism programmes, player welfare and to organisations that give a voice to fans.

Further information on all Premier League grassroots activities can be found in their published annual report ‘available at www.premierleague.com/this-is-pl/the-communities

DCMS Ministers continue to meet with the EPL and FA on a regular basis to discuss a variety of matters, including to ensure that the grassroots benefits from a healthy proportion of the broadcast rights revenue generated by the Premier League and any commercial surplus made by the FA.

In partnership with the Football Association and the Premier League, the government is continuing to invest significant sums in grassroots football facilities every year. In addition to the £10million we give to the Football Foundation each year, this Government has dedicated £8million per year to the new 'Parklife' project that will double the number of 3G pitches and enable over 3,500 community sports matches to be played per week.

I will be continuing the discussions with the Premier League about how best to support the game. Government believesthat given the size of the League's new TV deal, football's grassroots should receive greater investment than ever before, and we will work in partnership to ensure that this happens.

On 7^th July I met with Councillor Stephens from the Local Government Association and I am always open to engaging with local authority representatives on this important subject. Local authorities have a very important role in ensuring people from all backgrounds are able to participate in sport. They own or manage a large amount of sporting infrastructure in the country and have a responsibility to make sure that facilities and infrastructure are available and accessible. The Government, through Sport England, works closely with a wide range of local authorities, providing expert advice and funding to sustain and increase the number of people playing sport regularly.

I met with the Chief Executive of the Premier League to discuss this, and other topics on the 20th May. Further discussions are planned, and together we will work in partnership to ensure that funding for grassroots football remains strong.

While there have been no recent meetings, I am always open to engaging with local authority representatives on this important subject. Local authorities have a very important role in ensuring people from all backgrounds are able to participate in sport. They own or manage a large amount of sporting infrastructure in the country and have a responsibility to make sure that facilities and infrastructure are available and accessible. The Government, through Sport England, works closely with a wide range of local authorities, providing expert advice and funding to sustain and increase the number of people playing sport regularly.

There are currently 393 free schools open. Since 2010, eight free schools have closed. and one closure is planned for summer 2018. The primary objective of the department when making a decision to close a school is to ensure the best possible educational outcomes for pupils and to secure value for money for the taxpayer.

The table attached, available from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), provides a breakdown in total headcount figures of Department staff in the last five years.

Published Civil Service statistics can be found on the ONS website: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/publicsectorpersonnel/datasets/civilservicestatistics.

The table below provides the number of people who started an apprenticeship in the Parliamentary constituency Bolton North East for the last 10 academic years.

Notes:

1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
2. Figures for all years are final, except for the 2016/17 academic year, which is provisional.
3. Figures for 2011/12 onwards are already published and can be obtained: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/650904/201617_Oct_Apps_Geography_Data_Pack_Final.xlsm.
4. Figures for 2007/08 to 2010/11 are already published and can be obtained: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/586183/apprenticeships-starts-by-geography-learner-demographics-and-sector-subject-area.xlsx.
5. Figures for 2011/12 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years as a Single Individualised Learner Record data collection system has been introduced.
6. Parliamentary Constituency data is based upon the home postcode of the learner.
7. This table includes 2014/15 Employer Ownership Pilot (EOP) volumes that have not been finalised due to problems with the final 2014/15 EOP data collection.

The table below provides the number of people who started apprenticeships in England in the provisional 2016/17 academic year, by a breakdown of sector subject area.

Note: Figures include all funded and unfunded learners reported on the Individualised Learner Record and are rounded to the nearest 10, with the grand total rounded to the nearest 100. This is currently published by the department, and is available in the ‘Apprenticeship starts by level, framework and sector subject area data tool’:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/650226/201617_Oct_Apps_Level_SSA_And_Framework_Data_Tool_FINAL.xlsx.

In the latest 2016/17 provisional final year figures, the average length of stay on apprenticeship programmes was 479.8 days.

Notes:

1. Data source: Single Individualised Learner Record (SILR).
2. Within the SILR, providers can record the start date, planned end date, and actual end date for each apprenticeship record.
3. Actual end date is only recorded for learners who have reached the end of their programme, or those who have withdrawn early.
4. This calculation only includes those learners who have completed their programme.
5. Some learners can complete their programme in a shorter time due to prior learning.
6. Some learners take longer than expected due to planned breaks in learning.
7. A small number of learners from the Employer Outcome Pilot are not included in this calculation.