Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how the £400 provided by the Energy Bill Support Scheme announced on 21 September 2022 will be delivered to people who live in Park Homes.
Answered by Graham Stuart
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Hon. Member for St Albans on 22 September 2022 to Question 48498.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what support the Government provides to Post Offices wishing to locate ATMs on the outside of their premises.
Answered by Paul Scully
Over the past ten years, the Government has provided over £2.5 billion in funding to support the Post Office network. Government is providing a further £335 million for the Post Office over the next three years.
While the Government sets the strategic direction for the Post Office, it allows the company the commercial freedom to deliver this strategy as an independent business. The management of the Post Office network, including the provision for ATMs, is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 28 February 2022 to Question 128235, on Electricity: Standing Charges, whether it is his Department's understanding that the increase in the daily standing charge element of the April 2022 energy price cap is partly being used to cover the cost of energy firms still operating taking on consumers from energy firms which have stopped trading; and whether he has had discussions with Ofgem on that matter.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Costs incurred when customers are moved to a new supplier from a failed supplier are split between the receiving supplier and a levy on industry as a whole. The levy compensates suppliers for the unrecoverable costs of taking on customers, such as purchasing additional wholesale energy, and it is funded from gas transporters and electricity distributors Use of System charges.
The standing charge element of consumer bills reflects some of the fixed costs of supplying energy, including gas and electricity system costs. In the April-Oct calculation of the price cap Ofgem have increased the distribution cost allowance, driven mainly by an increase in the industry levy caused by exceptional global wholesale energy prices.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent estimate he has made of the number and proportion of homes in the private rented sector which are not classified as having an Energy Performance Certificate rating of C or above in (a) England, (b) Northern Ireland, (c) Scotland and (d) Wales.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The latest available estimates of the number and proportion of private rented sector homes which are EPC C or above are as follows.
| Number EPC C or above | Proportion EPC C or above |
England1 | 1,978,425 | 41.8% |
Northern Ireland2 | 60,860 | 44.8% |
Scotland3 | 125,000 | 40.0% |
Wales4 | 57,387 | 28.0% |
*Includes all vacant and occupied homes in the private rented sector.
** Includes homes with EPC ratings of A, B or C, using the SAP 2012 energy efficiency rating metric.
1 English Housing Survey 2020 to 2021 https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2020-to-2021-headline-report
2 Northern Ireland House Condition Survey 2016 https://www.nihe.gov.uk/Working-With-Us/Research/House-Condition-Survey
3 Scottish house Condition Survey 2019 https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-house-condition-survey-2019-key-findings/pages/5/
4 StatsWales dwelling stock estimates 2020 https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Housing/Dwelling-Stock-Estimates
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with Ofgem on the methodology or assessment used in their decision to increase the daily standing charge element of the April 2022 energy price cap from £0.25 to £0.45 for electricity and from £0.26 to £0.27 for gas.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Decisions on the level of the price cap are for Ofgem. The Government is in regular contact with Ofgem and industry to discuss the impact of unprecedented global gas prices and will continue to monitor the situation closely to ensure consumers are protected.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to introduce a new Standard Assessment Procedure for home Energy Performance Certificates before any change to the minimum energy efficiency requirements for the private rented sector.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The next version of the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP), which is used for building compliance and producing Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), will come into force in Summer 2022. The Department has also commenced work on developing a future version of SAP, which is expected to come into force in 2025, alongside the Future Homes Standard.
These updates are expected to precede any changes to the energy efficiency requirements for the private rented sector. The Government recently consulted on raising standards from 2025 for new tenancies and from 2028 for all tenancies.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reforming Energy Performance Certificates.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) underpin a growing number of BEIS policies and government targets, including the Government’s ambition for as many homes to reach EPC C by 2035, where practical, cost-effective, and affordable. In 2020, BEIS and MHCLG (now DLUHC) jointly published an EPC Action Plan detailing a series of commitments to maximise the effectiveness of EPCs as a tool for improving the energy performance of buildings. These commitments culminate to deliver the following three outcomes: an EPC system that produces accurate, reliable, and trusted EPCs, an EPC that engages consumers and supports policy to drive action, and a data infrastructure fit for the future of EPCs.
As part of its action plan, the Government is proceeding with an update to the EPC’s underlying methodology, exploring the potential to integrate Smart Meter Enabled Thermal Efficiency Ratings to bring measurement closer to actual performance, as well as investigating means of improving the recommendations generated by the EPC to be better tailored to the individual building. A report detailing the Government’s progress in delivering these commitments was published in November 2021.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment was used as the basis for closing the Microgeneration Certification Scheme Renewable Heat Incentive applications in favour of the new Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The domestic Renewable Heat Incentive launched in 2014 and will close to new applications, as scheduled on 31 March 2022. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme will launch following the closure of the Renewable Heat Incentive, and will provide a more targeted, accessible, and simpler offer, by providing upfront capital grants to support the installation of low carbon heat technologies. The capital grant directly targets the high upfront cost of low-carbon heating systems, which the Department’s evaluation of the Renewable Heat Incentive has shown to be a major barrier in uptake.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many companies have (a) successfully undertaken digital training for the new Boiler Upgrade Scheme and (b) been rejected for training for the new Boiler Upgrade Scheme as a result of over subscription.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government has not provided specific training for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. Over 1,200 businesses are now MCS-certified to install heat pumps and a number of training courses are available for heating engineers who wish to learn how to install heat pumps.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he will take to ensure Boiler Upgrade Scheme vouchers will not be hoarded by large companies who have the capacity to make bulk applications.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Vouchers will be allocated on a first come first serve basis, up until the budget cap for the financial year is reached. Any Microgeneration Certification Scheme certified installer who is able to meet the eligibility criteria and provide the required evidence at voucher application will be eligible to apply for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
Vouchers will have a limited validity period to ensure unused vouchers are returned and recycled in a timely manner.
The customer will also need to consent to the voucher application, which will prevent speculative bulk applications being made.