here - United Kingdom Parliament

1653 Oral Answers
6 JUNE 2013
Oral Answers
1654
Mr Davey: I am extremely concerned by energy bills.
We need to do as much as we possibly can and some of
our new policies will help people. I say to the Labour
party that it is this coalition Government who are
reforming tariffs to take away the confusion and complexity
that the previous Government failed to tackle, who are
looking into collective switching to help people get a
better deal from energy companies, and who are getting
more competition in our energy market. We are taking
a whole range of measures to help consumers.
Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab): Despite the initiatives
that the Secretary of State has referred to, in the real
world bills are going up and the energy companies are
making massive profits. Thousands of my constituents
are having difficulties paying their bills. When did the
Secretary of State last meet the energy companies, and
did he raise with them the amount of profit they are
making and what was their answer?
Mr Davey: I think I met the big six together in one
group last month. I will have to clarify the date on
which we spoke. We discussed a number of issues. I
made it clear to them that competition and consumer
service are critical. One of the best ways to make sure
that companies make reasonable profits is through healthy
competition.
Energy Efficiency
10. David Rutley (Macclesfield) (Con): What steps he
is taking to ensure the UK leads the way in energy
efficiency. [158085]
The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
(Mr Edward Davey): This Government’s November energy
efficiency strategy clearly sets out the importance of
reducing our energy demand and how the UK has an
opportunity to lead the world in improving its energy
efficiency. Game-changing initiatives such as the green
deal, electricity demand reduction and the roll-out of
smart meters are central to realising this opportunity.
David Rutley: Does my right hon. Friend agree that
helping to improve home insulation is vital when helping
to take people out of fuel poverty? What is this
Government’s energy company obligation doing to help
vulnerable and lower-income families in that vital task?
Mr Davey: My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Energy
prices have gone up massively on global markets and we
as a Government need to cushion people from those
rising prices by helping them with energy efficiency, and
through the green deal and ECO we are doing just that.
The affordable warmth component of ECO is already
making a major difference for people in fuel poverty
and helping to tackle it.
Luciana Berger (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab/Co-op):
I welcome the Secretary of State’s saying that he wants
to support people, but there has been a 97% plummet in
the number of cavity wall insulation installations, one
in four insulation workers has lost their job since December
and, according to industry reports, just three people are
paying back a green deal loan on their electricity bill.
When is he going to make the green deal a good deal, so
that the ambition that we all share is achieved?
Mr Davey: It is already a good deal. I understand the
issue in the cavity wall insulation market, but the hon.
Lady will understand that there are very few cavity
walls left to fill. The real issue in the building fabric of
the nation is solid walls. There are 7 million solid walls
that are yet to be treated for energy efficiency. The last
Government did almost nothing to tackle that. The
green deal and ECO will do something about it. That is
where the biggest wins are available and we are proud of
what we are doing.
Green Deal
14. Damian Hinds (East Hampshire) (Con): What
recent progress he has made on the roll-out of the green
deal. [158090]
The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate
Change (Gregory Barker): The coalition is committed
to helping consumers up and down the UK reduce their
energy bills by driving energy efficiency. The green deal
went live on time, as planned, on Monday 28 January.
By the end of April, more than 18,000 assessments had
been carried out. Later this month, we will publish data
on the number of green deal plans and a breakdown of
measures installed through the green deal and ECO.
Damian Hinds: It is encouraging to hear of so many
assessments, but how many providers does the Minister
anticipate will be offering plans by the end of the year?
Gregory Barker: My hon. Friend is right that the
number of companies that are able to offer finance is
key. I am extremely encouraged that four companies are
already writing plans. The Green Deal Finance Company
anticipates that another eight companies will start this
month and that a further 20 will begin to write plans by
the end of July. We think that about 50-plus companies
will offer finance by the end of the year. Ultimately,
when to start writing plans is a commercial decision for
each company because the green deal is primarily a
private sector market that is being created by this
Government.
Shale Gas
16. Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con): What progress
the Government has made on facilitating exploration of
UK shale gas reserves. [158093]
The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation
and Skills (Michael Fallon): We have strengthened the
regulatory framework to protect the environment and
to ensure that hydraulic fracturing is done properly and
safely. We want to encourage shale exploration. That is
why we have announced fiscal incentives for developers
and why we are working on a package of community
benefits, such as discounts on bills for residents in
drilling areas.
Mr Jones: Given today’s announcement about
community benefits for onshore wind, will my right
hon. Friend elaborate on what community benefits the
communities that host shale gas reserves may expect if
such exploration goes ahead?