Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in formulating the draft Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (Amendment) Regulations 2022, they considered the impact of carbon monoxide poisoning arising from sources in adjacent properties; and why the draft Regulations do not include a requirement for audible carbon monoxide detectors in bedrooms where there is no fixed combustion appliance, except for gas cookers.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
In formulating the draft regulations, the Government considered national statistics on overall numbers of accidental carbon monoxide poisonings. This, and the falling costs of carbon monoxide alarms, supported the case to extend alarm requirements to include social housing, to rooms having fixed combustion appliances in both rented sectors and to rooms where fixed combustion appliances are installed all irrespective of heating fuel (excluding gas cookers). These regulations, which will provide parity between rented sectors, are applicable to dwellings where a landlord has responsibility for internal repairs and maintenance. They do not account for adjacent properties for which the landlord is not responsible. This decision was based on the evidence and the right balance between safety for residents and ensuring regulatory burdens are proportionate.
Requiring alarms in rooms with fixed combustion appliances will help to mitigate risks in other rooms, as alarms will detect and give audible warning of carbon monoxide before it has a chance to spread elsewhere. It would not be proportionate to mandate additional alarms in other rooms, including bedrooms, that do not contain a fixed combustion appliance.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the impact of second-hand vaping smoke on the health of others; and if he will extend no smoking zones to include vaping.
Answered by Maggie Throup
There are no current plans to review this legislation to include vaping. The provision of separate vaping areas is a matter for individual organisations. While there is clear evidence of harm from tar and carbon monoxide from cigarette smoke, there is no comparable evidence of harm from second-hand exposure to vaping.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to review legislation on no smoking zones to include vaping.
Answered by Maggie Throup
There are no current plans to review this legislation to include vaping. The provision of separate vaping areas is a matter for individual organisations. While there is clear evidence of harm from tar and carbon monoxide from cigarette smoke, there is no comparable evidence of harm from second-hand exposure to vaping.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the impact of car engine idling on the environment.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Engine idling can be a significant contributor to local emissions, particularly where there may be a number of idling vehicles such as outside schools. Exhaust emissions contain a range of air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and particulate matter. These can affect the air quality of the surrounding environment and the air we breathe. That is why the law states that is an offence to idle your engine unnecessarily when stationary and Local Authorities have powers to issue Fixed Penalty Notices to drivers who do so.
Asked by: Geraint Davies (Independent - Swansea West)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he will require the disclosure of the emission results for wood burning stoves, including efficiency, oxides of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, particulate matter and organic gaseous compounds, when they are sold in accordance with the Ecodesign regulations from 1 January 2022.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As of 1 January 2022, new Ecodesign regulations require that when a solid fuel local space heater (wood burning stove) is placed on the UK market, the product’s efficiency and its emissions of particulate matter, organic gaseous compounds, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides under standardised test conditions must be provided in the instruction manual for installers and end-users as well as on a free-access website.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to gather evidence on the prevalence of incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning caused by gas cookers.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government takes the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning very seriously. We have announced that we will be legislating to extend requirements for carbon monoxide alarms, so that they are required in all private and socially rented homes in rooms with fixed combustion appliances and where new appliances are installed in any home.
Consideration was given to including gas cookers. The evidence available at the time showed that gas cookers are responsible for fewer incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning than gas boilers and that inclusion would be disproportionate.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, for what reason his Department has excluded gas cookers from the extended regulations on domestic smoke and carbon monoxide alarms announced in November 2021.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
The Government takes the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning very seriously. We have announced that we will be legislating to extend requirements for carbon monoxide alarms, so that they are required in all private and socially rented homes in rooms with fixed combustion appliances and where new appliances are installed in any home.
Consideration was given to including gas cookers. The evidence available at the time showed that gas cookers are responsible for fewer incidents of carbon monoxide poisoning than gas boilers and that inclusion would be disproportionate.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on protecting the health of HGV drivers from road air pollution.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) regulates work-related health and safety in Great Britain. Employers, including Local Authorities (LAs), have existing duties under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 to manage health risks where workers may be exposed to hazardous substances as a result of work. The Regulations are supported by Workplace Exposure Limits (WELS) for substances hazardous to health. These will inform an employer’s assessment and management of risk from exhaust emissions and pollutants such as Nitrogen Dioxide and Carbon Monoxide that can give rise to Occupational Lung Diseases (OLD).
Tackling OLDs as a result of exposure to hazardous substances at work is one of HSE’s health priorities. HSE works with a broad range of stakeholders including trade associations, employers, trade unions, third sector and professional bodies to reduce the incidence rate of OLDs.
Asked by: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to introduce an automatic test for carbon monoxide poisoning in post-mortems in line with the automatic test for drugs and alcohol.
Answered by Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
Coroners are independent judicial office holders and the way they conduct their investigations, including any post-mortem examinations and related tests they commission is a matter for them. Coroners will, however, only ask for toxicology in appropriate cases – they do not ask for it in every death – and the Government has no plans to introduce legislation for automatic testing for carbon monoxide poisoning.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether it is Government policy to implement the Social Housing White Paper in the 2021-22 Parliamentary Session.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
The Charter for Social Housing Residents: Social Housing White Paper will improve the lives of social housing residents in England. The package of measures underpinning the Charter will provide faster and more effective redress for residents, ensure residents are empowered to engage effectively with landlords, strengthen consumer regulation, and improve the quality and safety of social housing.
We have already made strong progress on implementation: we have launched a review of the Decent Homes Standard, a working group on electrical safety, and held a consultation on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, three key aspects of our commitment to ensure safe and decent homes, as well as running a national campaign to raise resident awareness of how to seek redress. We are continuing to drive forward implementation across the full range of Charter measures. This includes drafting the legislation required to implement the new consumer regulation regime, which we will introduce as soon as practicable.