Gavin Newlands

For complaints about mis-selling, the Financial Ombudsman Service is responsible for initial reviews. For many, but not all, complaints about other Green Deal matters, such as installation quality, the Green Deal Ombudsman is contracted to complete initial reviews.

In all cases, decisions regarding whether a breach has occurred and, if so, whether a sanction should be imposed, are the responsibility of my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State.

Complainants do not receive direct correspondence from the Financial Ombudsman Service as part of the reviews of complaints submitted to the Secretary of State. In addition to the work it completes on complaints to the Secretary of State, the Financial Ombudsman Service more generally handles Green Deal complaints about financing issues as part of its statutory role under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Some such complaints may subsequently be referred to the Secretary of State for review and may be the subject of associated correspondence between the Financial Ombudsman Service and the complainant, but such correspondence stands outside of the formal review process.

For complaints about mis-selling, the Financial Ombudsman Service is responsible for initial reviews. For many, but not all, complaints about other Green Deal matters, such as installation quality, the Green Deal Ombudsman is contracted to complete initial reviews.

In all cases, decisions regarding whether a breach has occurred and, if so, whether a sanction should be imposed, are the responsibility of my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State.

Complainants do not receive direct correspondence from the Financial Ombudsman Service as part of the reviews of complaints submitted to the Secretary of State. In addition to the work it completes on complaints to the Secretary of State, the Financial Ombudsman Service more generally handles Green Deal complaints about financing issues as part of its statutory role under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Some such complaints may subsequently be referred to the Secretary of State for review and may be the subject of associated correspondence between the Financial Ombudsman Service and the complainant, but such correspondence stands outside of the formal review process.

The Department does not record data on correspondence acknowledging receipt of a complaint on Green Deal loan mis-selling which has been sent by this Department. Complaints on Green Deal mis-selling can be received through a number of routes, including email, post, and official Department and Ministerial correspondence.

For complaints about mis-selling, the Financial Ombudsman Service is responsible for initial reviews. For many, but not all, complaints about other Green Deal matters, such as installation quality, the Green Deal Ombudsman is contracted to complete initial reviews.

In all cases, decisions regarding whether a breach has occurred and, if so, whether a sanction should be imposed, are the responsibility of my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State.

Complainants do not receive direct correspondence from the Financial Ombudsman Service as part of the reviews of complaints submitted to the Secretary of State. In addition to the work it completes on complaints to the Secretary of State, the Financial Ombudsman Service more generally handles Green Deal complaints about financing issues as part of its statutory role under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Some such complaints may subsequently be referred to the Secretary of State for review and may be the subject of associated correspondence between the Financial Ombudsman Service and the complainant, but such correspondence stands outside of the formal review process.

Under the Green Deal Framework regulations, loans can be reduced or cancelled where there has been a breach of the relevant rules, and my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State is satisfied that the consumer has suffered, or is likely to suffer, a substantive loss. This applies to any complaint which meets the eligibility requirements regardless of whether it concerns a Green Deal Plan that was in place at a property prior to a complainant inheriting that property.

The Department does not record data on the number of complaints about mis-selling of Green Deal Plans by Home Energy & Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELMS) received from complainants who did not enter the original credit agreement as the property “improver”. Complaints to my Rt, Hon. Friend the Secretary of State can be made under the Green Deal Framework regulations by original improvers or subsequent bill payers (other eligibility criteria must also met).

The UK Internal Market Bill ensures the UK can operate as a coherent internal market, guaranteeing UK companies can trade unhindered in every part of the UK while maintaining world-leading standards for consumers, workers, food and the environment.

The UK has some of the highest standards in the world on goods and some of the most robust standards on foods, with world-leading food, animal and plant health and animal welfare standards.

The Government has a zero-tolerance approach to fraud. A bespoke package of counter-fraud measures will be built into the scheme design, drawing on best practice and lessons learnt?from previous domestic and international?schemes.

In his Summer Economic Update, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a £2bn Green Home Grant scheme that will support homeowners and landlords of rented homes in England to improve the energy efficiency of their properties, reducing energy bills and carbon emissions, and supporting a green economic recovery.

The funding will be spent on paying for accredited tradespeople to install a range of measures, for example insulation, to improve the energy performance of their homes. Further detail on the eligibility for the scheme will be announced in the coming days, before the scheme’s full launch.

In his Summer Economic Update, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a £2bn Green Home Grant scheme that will support homeowners and landlords of rented homes in England to improve the energy efficiency of their properties, reducing energy bills and carbon emissions, and supporting a green economic recovery.

The funding will be spent on paying for accredited tradespeople to install a range of measures, for example insulation, to improve the energy performance of their homes. Further detail on the eligibility for the scheme will be announced in the coming days, before the scheme’s full launch.

Ministers in the Department hold many meetings with companies, including Rolls-Royce, to discuss a wide range of business issues.

Details of meetings held by Ministers in the Department are recorded in our transparency data, which is published at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/beis-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings.

The Department continues to work closely with the fuel sector to ensure that plans are in place to maintain the supply of petroleum and diesel in the event of a public health emergency.

The sector is used to varying levels of demand, and disruptions to supply, for example during inclement weather, and is adept at directing resource to where it is most needed. In addition, the Government has a long-standing fuel supply contingency programme that can be deployed in support of industry to maintain fuel supplies as close to normal levels as possible.

As of 3^rd March 2020, there are 147 outstanding appeals, relating to the company Home Energy & Lifestyle Management Ltd (HELMS), which have been referred to my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State.

The Regulations require that, before imposing any sanction, the Secretary of State gives notice to affected parties of his intention to impose a sanction and provides them with an opportunity to make representations before it is made final. To date, 83 Intention Notices have been issued in respect of the outstanding HELMS appeals.

The tables attached provide details of the age of the outstanding appeals, broken down by (i) constituency, (ii) local authority area and (iii) NUTS first level region.

My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State and my rt. hon. Friend Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer regularly meet to discuss a range of issues, including the oil and gas industry. The Government will publish draft legislation on Transferable Tax History shortly.

We are in constant contact with the steel industry on this issue, indeed Minsters from the Department of Business Energy & Industrial Strategy, together with Ministers from the Department for International Trade last met the steel companies impacted on 5 June. We have also convened a Steel Council meeting on 18 June to discuss this further and the Scottish Government has been invited to attend.

Ministers are in regular contact with the Scottish Government on a range of issues and my rt. Hon Friend the Minister of State for International Trade has spoken and written to Keith Brown MSP, Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Jobs and Fair Work since tariffs were put in place on 1 June on this important issue. Alongside this, BEIS and DIT officials have been in regular contact with officials from the Welsh and Scottish Governments to ensure that they have been kept fully abreast of these developments over the last year.

As announced in Parliament on 4 June 2018, Hitachi and the UK Government have decided to enter into negotiations in relation to the proposed Wylfa Newydd project and the Government is considering direct investment into the project. Details of any Government investment are subject to negotiation and yet to be decided.

The successful conclusion of these negotiations will be subject to full Government, regulatory and other approvals—including, but not limited to, value for money, due diligence and state aid requirements. These negotiations are commercially sensitive and no final decision has yet been taken to proceed with the project.

Our policy is to ensure that the UK has safe, secure and low carbon supplies of energy. In line with our Industrial Strategy, as our energy industry develops, we expect to see job opportunities created across the UK.

Since the start of the Green Deal, the following number of households have received Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems in Scotland by constituency:

Households that have received Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems (HELMS)

- Note: Numbers greater than zero but less than five have been marked “1-4” as these figures are potentially disclosive and so have been suppressed. In total, these suppressed figures come to: 12 for ‘Households receiving HELMS plans’ and 16 for ‘of which plans including photovoltaics’.

Since the start of the Green Deal, the following number of households have received Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems in Scotland by constituency:

Households that have received Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems (HELMS)

- Note: Numbers greater than zero but less than five have been marked “1-4” as these figures are potentially disclosive and so have been suppressed. In total, these suppressed figures come to: 12 for ‘Households receiving HELMS plans’ and 16 for ‘of which plans including photovoltaics’.

Since the start of the Green Deal, 381 households in Paisley and Renfrewshire have accessed Green Deal finance through Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems.

By constituency, this breaks down as 293 households in Paisley and Renfrewshire North and 88 households in Paisley and Renfrewshire South.

Since the start of the Green Deal, 272 photovoltaics installations were undertaken in the Paisley and Renfrewshire North constituency through Green Deal plans provided by Home Energy Lifestyle Management Systems.

Over 200,000 British Students have been able to study abroad on the Erasmus programme. Access to this programme is just one of the many reasons why the Government believes we are safer, stronger and better off inside a reformed EU.

The core Department has spent £0 on debt collection agencies in the last seven years.

The core Department has no direct contracts with debt collection agencies.