§ Ms Julia Drown (South Swindon)I beg to move,
That leave be given to bring in a Bill to improve the gathering and provision of information on the energy efficiency of homes.The Bill seeks to amend the 1994 building regulations to improve consumer information and save the environment. It is about thinking globally and acting locally. The objective is to give consumers good information so that they can buy or rent more energy-efficient homes, which would reduce fuel bills and emissions of gases, including carbon dioxide. As my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, who led the British delegation last week in Kyoto, said:Unless we act now"—on the greenhouse gases that cause global warming—we shall be condemning our children to a world of drought and crop failures, rising seas, mass migration and spreading disease."—[Official Report, 16 December 1997; Vol. 303, c. 129.]The Bill would make a contribution to that important work.The practice of energy-rating houses, especially new houses, began some years ago. The intention was to show how energy-efficient a house was, so that a potential purchaser or tenant could judge one property against another on its energy use, and therefore fuel bills. Houses were given a rating for energy efficiency, but there were several unofficial rating systems, which were run by various energy consultants.
In 1992, the Environment Select Committee, in its fourth report, recommended that the Government sought to establish one national home energy rating scheme and actively promote it in the market. The Government have devised the standard assessment procedure, or SAP rating, which rated houses from 1, or highly energy-inefficient, to 100, or highly energy-efficient. To advance the cause of energy efficiency, the idea was incorporated into the 1994 building regulations, under which builders were required to produce an SAP rating for all new houses and for conversions which constituted a material change of use under planning law. The intention was to ensure one standard rating and to make it available so that purchasers had information on the energy efficiency of a house before buying or renting.
However, the scheme has not worked properly. If we can get it to work properly, energy rating could make an important contribution to getting everyone to think about energy conservation and efficiency. It is a win-win policy. The impact of energy conservation on fuel poverty and the environment could be substantial.
The Energy Saving Trust has calculated that energy conservation measures could save nearly 20 per cent. of domestic energy consumption in the UK by 2010. For some households, that would mean savings of up to £250 every year on their fuel bills, and it would save the UK as a whole some £6 billion. Such measures would also cut the domestic sector's carbon dioxide emissions by 14 per cent. However, to achieve those figures, every opportunity to improve energy efficiency must be taken.
The Bill would strengthen the building regulations to encourage energy efficiency, and would address the two shortcomings in the 1994 regulations. First, the requirement for quality control was not strict enough; secondly, there was no requirement to inform prospective purchasers or tenants of a house's SAP rating.
334 The effect of the first shortcoming has been expertly summed up by Professor Jake Chapman:
The current situation is that many insulation manufacturers, boiler makers, heating designers and architects offer free SAP ratings to builders based on free and unchecked software. There is no quality control over the software or the data entered into the programmes. Most people using the system have not read the Government's published guidance notes that explain the conventions for assessing properties. As a result, building control officers do not have any confidence in the SAP rating being debated and have no reason to pursue the matter further.The effect of the second shortcoming is that purchasers and tenants are often not told of the SAP rating. Professor Chapman added:Many builders would be ashamed if the low SAP ratings of their properties were publicised to customers. Currently the average SAP rating for new private houses is about 70. This compares with an average of 85 to 90 for housing association properties. This difference is created at very little additional cost.The additional costs at the time of building have been estimated at a mere £250 per dwelling, yet the impact on fuel bills can be substantial. Opportunities are being missed.The additional costs of extra insulation and better boilers or controls are very low when a home is first built. Installing smaller insulation is cost-effective only if it is built in from the start. This is much more important for new houses, as new housing sets the standards of expectation for the rest of the market. If builders promoted their new homes as energy-efficient, it would have a ripple effect throughout the housing market.
My Bill deals with the shortcomings in the 1994 regulations. It will require tougher control of the issuing of SAP ratings, and will require those ratings to be stated in all promotional material relating to the sale or letting of a property. That will enable people to see how energy-efficient their prospective home is, and will be a further force towards greater energy efficiency.
The Bill will cost central and local government nothing, and will contribute to reducing fuel bills. It will help people to live in warmer homes, which, on a cold day like today, will be appreciated by everybody. It will help reduce greenhouse and other gases. This short Bill will follow the excellent work done on the world agenda by my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister in Kyoto. It is good for purses and good for the planet, and I commend it to the House.
Question put and agreed to.
Bill ordered to be brought in by Ms Julia Drown, Mr. Clive Efford, Mr. Cynog Dafis, Mr. Matthew Taylor, Ms Tess Kingham, Mr. David Chaytor, Angela Smith, Mr. Alan Simpson, Mrs. Linda Gilroy, Mrs. Margaret Ewing, Mr. Tony Colman and Ms Debra Shipley.