Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Home Energy Efficiency: North of England — [Mr Laurence Robertson in the Chair]

06 July 2022 · 9 other contributors · 12,062 words

Opened by Peter Gibson Con Darlington

Responding minister: Greg Hands

ClimateEnergyEnvironment

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Peter Gibson raised concerns about home energy efficiency: north of england — [mr laurence robertson in the chair] in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • Concerns raised about high carbon emissions from homes in the north of England, with Darlington experiencing high levels of fuel poverty.
  • North Star Housing estimates the cost to decarbonise a two-bedroom Victorian terraced house at 45,500, including 12,000 for solid wall insulation.
  • MP asks the Minister to outline plans for the delivery of retrofitting schemes and the commencement date for the new energy company obligation scheme (ECO4).

Key requests to Government

I ask the Minister to outline what more can be done to ensure continued delivery of retrofitting schemes and address the skills gap in green jobs. I also inquire about the commencement date for the new energy company obligation scheme (ECO4).

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Peter Gibson Con Darlington

I am concerned about the high percentage of older properties in the north of England, which are difficult to insulate due to solid walls and planning constraints. Twenty-six percent of the region's carbon emissions come from homes, with Darlington having some of the highest levels of fuel poverty. Insulating homes better can save residents money on heating costs and improve health outcomes. However, North Star Housing estimates that decarbonising a two-bedroom Victorian terraced house would cost £45,500, including £12,000 for solid wall insulation alone, which is not financially viable without targeted support.

Other contributors (9)
  • Alan Whitehead Lab Southampton, Test

    Mr Alan Whitehead highlighted the significant gap in energy efficiency between older properties in the north of England and newer buildings. He mentioned that pre-1930s properties have a median score of 56 compared to over 80 for buildings constructed from 2012 onwards, indicating substantial retrofit needs. He also noted the disparity in carbon emissions with new properties emitting just over 1.5 tonnes CO2 annually versus existing ones at 3.6 tonnes. Whitehead called for a comprehensive programme of retrofitting across the country and expressed concern over the delay in implementing ECO4.

  • Laura Trott Lab Dayton

    She supports the work of Peter Gibson and recognises the impact of high fuel costs on vulnerable households. She suggests that more needs to be done to encourage take-up of home insulation measures.

  • Margaret Greenwood Lab Blackley and Broughton

    She highlighted the urgent need to improve energy efficiency in homes, especially for those on low incomes. Margaret noted that poorly insulated homes exacerbate rising fuel costs and health issues. She called on the Government to match Labour's ambition of insulating 19 million homes within a decade, which could save households £400 annually. Additionally, she asked about providing more funding for local areas like Liverpool city region to retrofit homes and increase apprenticeships in building skills. The Minister is right that my hon. Friend the Member for Hampstead and Kilburn (Tulip Siddiq) is not in her place, but would he agree, or concede, that it was a Conservative Government that pulled the funding for solar on people's roofs, stymying an industry and making it much more expensive for people to install solar? Precious years have been lost, and we could have had many more solar panels on our roofs.

  • Mike Amesbury Lab Weaver Vale

    Mr Amesbury highlighted the challenge of retrofitting homes to meet energy efficiency standards, noting that 1.5 million new homes have not met these standards over recent years. He pointed out that across the north, 12% of homes pose a category 1 health hazard and nearly 60% of homes are below top three bands for energy efficiency. Amesbury also emphasized the economic opportunities in making homes green, citing the levelling-up White Paper's prediction of creating 240,000 jobs by 2035 through home upgrades.

  • Navendu Mishra Lab Stockport

    The cost of living crisis is impacting housing affordability and energy efficiency. The standing charge for gas and electricity has increased significantly, affecting people's finances. A constituent faced financial hardship due to poor quality cavity wall insulation work funded by the Government initiative in 2013, resulting in £37,000 damages awarded but unpaid. Another case involves Ms Phoebe Spence who retrofitted her home with external wall insulation and an air source heat pump, but not everyone can afford such improvements.

  • Paul Blomfield

    Agrees with the significance of domestic carbon emissions linked to fuel poverty. Points out that 60% of homes in Sheffield fail EPC band C standard, and suggests more ambition on retro-insulation for multiple benefits.

  • Paul Howell Con Stratford-on-Avon

    Mr Howell highlighted the importance of energy efficiency in Sedgefield, noting high rates of fuel poverty and significant costs for property insulation. He praised the green homes grant voucher scheme but stressed challenges such as absentee landlords and low property values making upgrades uneconomical. He declared an interest as a private landlord and agreed that different approaches are needed for high-value property areas versus northern regions. Paul argued that focusing on absentee landlords in the north is crucial to prevent properties from becoming derelict.

  • Scott Benton

    Welcomes grants from the social housing decarbonisation fund and supports further action to reduce household bills. Mentions Blackpool's receipt of £1.4 million in grants.

  • Tulip Siddiq Lab Hampstead and Highgate

    Recognises the fuel poverty issues in north London, blaming the global gas crisis on poor regulation and lack of investment. Asks if a new approach to energy efficiency is needed.

Government Response

Greg Hands

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Robertson. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Darlington on securing this important debate. The Government's unwavering commitment to decarbonise the country's 30 million buildings has the welfare of those who most need energy-efficient homes at its very core. Underpinning all our work is the heat and buildings strategy, published in October 2021, which explores different options for low-carbon heating such as hydrogen trials and increased use of heat pumps. We are taking a fabric-first approach to retrofit, ensuring emissions are reduced first regardless of how buildings are heated, supported by £6.6 billion investment during this Parliament for technology trials and capital schemes like the home upgrade grant and the boiler upgrade scheme. Over 13% of homes in the north-west and over 12% of homes in the north-east have received energy efficiency measures under the energy company obligation since its start in 2013, with Darlington at 12.2%. The Minister mentioned that despite progress on energy efficiency—particularly over the past decade—there is still much work to do and cited an increase from just 14% of properties being rated 'energy efficient' when they took office in 2010 to 46% today. He noted that the Government are taking active measures to increase and support solar energy, targeting a capacity growth from around 14 GW to 70 GW by part of this ambition is thanks to the VAT reduction on solar panels introduced earlier this year. The Minister also announced that they laid the draft Electricity and Gas (Energy Company Obligation) Order 2022 before Parliament on 22 June, expecting regulations to come into force in July. He highlighted the Government's investment in skills training for green jobs through initiatives like the BEIS skills training competition, which resulted in over 7,000 new training places for heat pumps and insulation. The Minister stated that fuel poverty is falling in England, from 13.2% last year to 12.5% this year, though it remains unsatisfactory. The Government's future homes standard will be introduced in 2025 to improve energy efficiency standards for new builds. There are ongoing investments like the local authority delivery scheme and home upgrade grant empowering local authorities to decarbonise homes according to specific needs with around £226 million allocated in the north, as well as over £1 billion committed last year alone to domestic retrofitting schemes. The Minister emphasized support for those in the private rented sector through measures such as ending 'no fault' evictions and giving tenants a right of redress. He also mentioned funding like the social housing decarbonisation fund investing £63 million for around 8,000 homes in the north to install energy efficiency measures.

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