§ Mr. Fallonasked the Secretary of State for Energy what level of grant he has approved for Neighbourhood Energy Action in 1986–87; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Peter WalkerMy Department's grant to Neighbourhood Energy Action for 1986–87 will be £275,000. This compares with a grant of £186,764 in 1985–86. The increase is to enable NEA to expand the services that it provides to the voluntary insulation projects. The number of projects has increased from 114 in March last year to over 230 in March this year, and is expected to increase further to over 400 by the end of the year. NEA provides management advice, information and training to the projects. I regard NEA's services as a major contribution to the success achieved by the projects in insulating over 150,000 houses to date, mainly the homes of pensioners and disabled people.