Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to concerns about water usage in the Government's Chief Scientific Advisor's report, From Waste to Resource Productivity, published on 14 December 2017, if he will take steps to promote stored passive flue gas heat recovery systems which enable consumers to save on water use as well as energy use.

Under the right circumstances flue gas heat recovery technology can lead to significant savings for householders. In October 2017 my department published new standards for domestic boiler installations that will come into force in April 2018. The new standards will require installers to ensure, whenever they are employed to install a boiler, that the household heating system is equipped with an appropriate energy saving device. The standard is flexible to empower consumers to decide what kind of energy saving measure is best for their home. One of the options is flue gas heat recovery, which means that from April I expect to see this technology being installed wherever it is the best option for driving efficiency and reducing consumers’ bills.

With regards to more general flue gas heat recovery system, my Department has just finished consulting on an Industrial Heat Recovery Support Programme, which I aim to launch in the summer.