Household Safety (Carbon Monoxide Detectors) Bill

Hilary Benn Excerpts

Friday 12th September 2014 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Bingham (High Peak) (Con)]

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.

I am used to emptying rooms, and today is no different. I was not sure how much time I would get to deliver this speech, given the other business of the House, especially after an urgent question was tabled earlier today. I realise that there is little chance of the Bill making it on to the statute book or even gaining a Second Reading. However, I want to use the time that I have to raise the profile of the issue of carbon monoxide and the detection of it in properties.

When my name was drawn out of the ballot for private Members’ Bills earlier this year, I decided to put the matter to my constituents. I came up with five subjects and my constituents voted on which one they wanted me to take forward. This is the Bill that they chose, so I can genuinely say that I am speaking on behalf of my constituents.

Carbon monoxide is a killer—there is no other way of describing it. It is colourless, tasteless and odourless. People inhale it in complete ignorance and are slowly but surely poisoned. The symptoms include headaches, tiredness, dizziness and nausea. Those are common symptoms that are easily attributable to other things. Consequently, people have no idea that they are being slowly poisoned. That can go on for many weeks and years. As next week is gas safety week, today is an opportune time to raise this issue.

I am naturally against regulation. I therefore resisted including in the Bill a provision to make carbon monoxide detectors compulsory in all residences across the country. Although that would be desirable, I am conscious of the bureaucratic burden that would be placed on whoever had to enforce such a law. Similarly, while I think that every household should fit one anyway, I think that it would be inappropriate for the state to force it on them. Although it is a small expense, it would be wrong for us to burden people with it.

The Bill would harmonise legislation across the UK because the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014, which was passed by the Scottish Parliament, made the installation of carbon monoxide detectors mandatory in private rented properties in Scotland. I know that Scotland is on all our minds, although admittedly not because of Scottish housing law, but as we move forward as a United Kingdom, as I sincerely hope we will, some continuity across the two nations would be eminently sensible.

Although the focus of the Bill is tight, it is worth raising the issue of where carbon monoxide can come from and in what circumstances it can occur, even though they may not be completely encompassed within the range of the Bill. Where does carbon monoxide come from? It emanates from many sources and is caused when carbon fuels do not burn properly. Despite a perception that the problem is restricted to gas fires, it can be wider than that, and any fuel-burning appliance that is not properly maintained has the potential to be a source of carbon monoxide. Cookers, AGAs and hot water heaters all have the capacity to emit carbon monoxide. Indeed, someone may be at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if they share a wall with a house that has a carbon monoxide leak, even if they do not have one.

Let me share a piece of evidence from my constituent Tony Meheran. He returned home one day to find his family all sitting drowsily by the gas fire. On investigation, they found that a crow’s nest had blocked their chimney. Added to the fact that they had an incorrectly fitted chimney cowling, it meant that carbon monoxide was seeping into the house and creating a potentially fatal hazard. It is that easy. It could happen to anyone in their own home, and as I said, they would not know it was happening.

Carbon monoxide is completely indiscriminate, but some people are at more risk than others. Young children, the elderly, people with heart and lung disease are especially vulnerable, and pregnant women risk damage to their unborn child. I do not wish to be alarmist or for anyone to panic that we are all being poisoned by carbon monoxide, but we should be aware of and concerned about the issue as it is easy to detect and even prevent. Regular servicing of appliances will ensure that the problem does not arise, but there is also an easy way to detect the problem: a simple carbon monoxide detector, properly placed with an audible alarm will alert someone when carbon monoxide is present. Those small, inexpensive items can literally save someone’s life.

I represent High Peak, which is a rural constituency with lots of tourists. We get a lot of camping, and even when camping people are not immune from carbon monoxide. As people sit outside their tent, caravan or motor home on a summer evening, watching the sun go down with the barbecue slowly smouldering in close proximity, they should be aware that that smouldering barbecue is emitting carbon monoxide. Portable barbecues and heaters can be and have been responsible for tragic deaths in camper vans, caravans and mobile homes across the country, and in Cornwall, Shropshire and other areas there have been tragedies as a result of carbon monoxide from such appliances. Many think that carbon monoxide—the silent killer—is associated with the winter months and caused by appliances that are used extensively in winter. Again, that is not right and deaths can occur in the summer.

As the Bill states, I wish to ensure the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in new build and rental properties. With new build properties, I think that it is a completely fair requirement for house builders. It is not over-burdensome and does not involve too much regulation. I hear arguments about burdening developers with extra regulation and cost, but to me those arguments do not wash. If a developer’s margins when building houses are that tight, and the difference between profit and loss is a CO₂ detector, somewhere they have got their sums badly wrong. CO₂ detectors are not expensive, and given the amount of house building going on, if they are bought in bulk the price will come down. If the Bill becomes law, there would be an increased use of such detectors and—just as we have seen with many devices—the more that are sold, the lower the price becomes.

Rental properties are another area affected, and particularly student accommodation where a landlord has not taken proper precautions. There have been several tragic stories up and down the country of people in rental accommodation who have suffered from carbon monoxide poisoning. I think any landlord would and should want proper protection for their tenants, and the Bill would ensure that.

[Hilary Benn (Leeds Central) (Lab)]

The hon. Gentleman is making an extremely powerful case. Given the time, I might not have the opportunity to contribute later, so on behalf of the Opposition may I say that we strongly support his Bill? The small cost and the simple measure that he advocates will help to save those 40 lives that are lost and those who are injured. Does he agree that just as there is a strong case for the measure before the House, there is also a strong argument for doing something about smoke detectors, given the lives they can save?

[Andrew Bingham]

The right hon. Gentleman makes a fair point. In fact, I was going to mention smoke detectors. I am not technically minded, but it cannot be beyond the wit of man to make a combined smoke and carbon monoxide detector—and one day every home should have one, as they say. I appreciate his support, though. Instinctively, I am for light-touch regulation, and the regulation the Bill imposes would not be great. On rental properties, my aim could be easily achieved with secondary legislation through an amendment to the Energy Act 2013, but the Bill would send a clear message and take care of both areas, which is what I want. Smoke alarms are everywhere—quite rightly—and carbon monoxide detectors are just as easy and cheap to obtain. I recommend that every house have one.

I realise that we are running out of time, but I hope that by raising this matter today, I have put it at the forefront of people’s minds. Someone might watch this and think, “I should have a carbon monoxide detector in my home”. As I said, they are easy and cheap to obtain, and I advocate that everyone have one. I was going to talk at much greater length, but I am conscious of the time and that other Members might wish to speak, so I will be brief. I understand parliamentary procedure: I know that the Bill we discussed before was important, so I understand why it was allowed to run, and I was glad to see it pass. Obviously, we also had the urgent question, which was equally important, and then there was the loss of our former colleague who sadly died today. I understand why so little time is left, therefore, and I realise that other hon. Members might like to contribute.

I hope that the Government will note the contents of the Bill. I have had a lot of support from various organisations and bodies and, on some occasions, from house builders and developers.