HL Deb 01 April 1998 vol 588 cc47-54WA
Lord Hughes of Woodside

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What progress has been made by government departments towards the target of improving energy efficiency by 20 per cent. in the nine years to 31 March 2000. [HL1349]

Baroness Hayman

By 31 March 1997, energy efficiency in government departments had improved by just over 15 per cent. since 1990–91.

Full details are given in the attached tables; the overall improvement is shown in Table 4. The tables include revisions to figures for earlier years revealing better performance than previously reported. All results reported here relate to periods before this administration took office. Energy management in individual departments is a matter for those departments and their green Minister. The Government aim to be at the forefront of good practice to improve energy efficiency, and will be looking to ensure that momentum is maintained through the strengthened role of green Ministers under the Chairmanship of my right honourable friend the Minister for the Environment, Mr. Michael Meacher. We are also working on the development of new performance indicators which will, for the first time, enable comparisons with independent standards of good practice across the economy.

The results for the former Department of the Environment in 1996–97 were affected by relocation and rationalisation of its accommodation in London and elsewhere. This resulted in the need to run a number of old and new buildings while changes took place. The department's two new headquarters buildings at Eland House and Ashdown House will be fully occupied by the end of March 1998. Both include a number of energy efficient measures, including a combined heat and power system and a displacement cooling system.

Table 1: Government estate: energy efficiency performance1
Energy Expenditure2 £ Own investment in energy efficiency2 £ Percentage reduction relative to 1990–913 (positive figures represent per cent, improvement} Total cost at standard prices adjusted for estate and weather changes
Civil Departments, including Agencies 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97
Scottish Office8 1,139,914 779,634 60,000 70,000 — -6 -8 -12 -18 -17
Scottish Court Service8 755,401 755,401 80,000 80,000 — 2 5 18 33 33
Scottish Prison Service 2,424,377 2,409,695 372,690 0 -1 0 4 5 7 3
Social Security11 14,236,000 15,684,969 1,000,000 1,170,000 -1 -1 -4 -1 3 -5
Trade and Industry 2,718,253 2,170,740 0 0 5 5 0 5 33 41
Transport5. 12 2,940,057 2,807,248 235,205 315,000 7 8 12 17 15 23
Treasury 234,492 393,162 1,855 0 8 4 -9 -1 5 -3
Welsh Office 543,700 488,895 11,933 25,540 1 2 2 4 3 3
Total 92,612.785 94,560,872 8,522,048 3,787,629 1.3 0.6 0.6 0.6 7.4 7.5

Table 2: Government estate: energy efficiency performance1. 16
Performance against energy and cost indicators, relative to 1990–91 (positive figures represent per cent, progress)
Adjusted for estate and weather changes Adjusted for weather changes only
Fossil fuel Electricity Total kWh Total cost CO2 Total CO2
Civil Departments, including Agencies 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97 1995–96 1996–97
MAFF—"Main estate"4 47 48 -16 -12 33 35 11 14 16 19 13 5
MAFF—Laboratories -9 16 -34 1 -16 12 -25 6 15 17 -23 22
Cabinel Office 39 46 -1 -23 30 29 15 4 20 16 -6 -34
Culture, Media and Sport10 -11 2 -6 0 -9 -8 -7 -16 -7 -15 -7 -15
Customs and Excise 48 43 13 3 32 25 20 11 25 16 -12 -17
Education and Employment 28 28 -17 -27 6 2 -9 -17 -5 -13 2 -2
Employment Service 17 23 -6 -14 11 13 2 0 4 2 -4 -2
Environment5 10 36 0 -13 31 24 16 7 26 19 25 27
Environment—HSE6 3 15 19 22 9 18 15 20 18 24 22 26
Environment—QEII CC2.6 -52 -8 -1 -1 -19 -3 -6 -1 -7 -2 -7 -2
FCO 23 16 -26 -33 3 -4 -14 -21 -10 -18 -1 -28
Health2 33 41 -84 -75 -11 -3 -54 -46 -40 -32 -21 -14
Home Office 5 5 -5 -1 2 3 -2 1 0 3 3 5
Home Office—Prisons2 12 15 -18 -20 9 11 0 1 10 13 -2 -2
Inland Revenue 23 12 13 17 19 14 16 16 18 17 23 28
International Development9 -8 29 17 38 1 32 11 35 10 35 9 68
Lord Chancellor's Department 30 30 3 6 22 23 12 14 15 17 -4 0
National Savings 18 3 19 28 19 17 19 24 19 24 21 28
Northern Ireland 18 16 11 6 15 13 13 10 24 21 12 11
Scottish Office8 18 19 -39 -38 3 4 -18 -17 -8 -3 -7 10
Scottish Court Service8 39 39 30 30 36 36 33 33 34 34 14 14
Scottish Prison Service 15 11 -6 -12 13 9 7 3 10 5 5 0
Social Security11 26 18 -9 -18 16 9 3 -5 7 -1 -9 -21
Trade and Industry 67 67 20 31 51 54 33 41 38 44 58 66
Transports5.12 32 46 10 15 24 35 15 23 18 25 39 43
Treasury 16 19 0 -14 11 9 5 -3 10 3 29 -10
Welsh Office 38 31 -6 -4 18 16 3 3 7 7 17 24
Total 20.6 21.0 -1.0 -1.2 15.3 15.5 7.4 7.5 13.1 13.6 7.0 7.4

Table 3: Government estate: energy efficiency performance13. 14
Percentage reduction relative to 1990–91 (positive figures represent per cent, improvement)
Adjusted for estate changes and weather correction
Fossil fuel Electricity Total kWh
Ministry of Defence 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97
Civil 15 25 35 11 1 5 13 17 25
Navy 14 32 37 33 39 41 18 33 38
Army 11 17 2 18 20 20 13 17 6
RAF 13 23 26 10 9 14 12 20 23
Procurement Executive 0 23 99 0 21 6 0 22 63
DERA 13 17 -8 3 3 -2 8 10 -5
Total 11.7 21.5 16.6 17.4 18.7 20.1 13.9 20.8 17.4

Percentage reduction relative to 1990–91 (positive figures represent per cent, improvement)
Adjusted for estate changes and weather correction Adjusted for weather estate changes only
Total cost CO2 Total CO2
Ministry of Defence 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97
Civil 12 8 14 12 11 19 -7 -8 0
Navy 25 36 40 26 39 43 13 26 30
Army 15 18 12 16 21 13 16 25 18
RAF 11 15 19 12 17 20 21 25 29
Procurement Executive 0 22 29 0 22 41 0 22 41
DERA 0 6 -3 0 7 -4 0 7 -4
Total 15.5 19.9 18.6 16.5 22.0 20.6 16.6 23.9 22.5

Table 4: Government estate: energy efficiency performance15
Percentage reduction relative to 1990–91 (positive figures represent per cent, improvement)
Adjusted for estate changes and weather correction
Fossil fuel Electricity Total kWh
Entire Government estate 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97
Civil Departments 11.6 20.6 21.0 -6.4 -1.0 -1.2 7.1 15.3 15.5
MoD 11.7 21.5 16.6 17.4 18.7 20.1 13.9 20.8 17.4
Total 11.6 21.2 17.9 9.6 12.2 13.1 11.8 19.1 16.8

Percentage reduction relative to 1990–91 (positive figures represent per cent, improvement)
Adjusted for estate changes and weather correction Adjusted for weather estate changes only
Total cost CO2 Total CO2
Entire Government estate 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97
Civil Departments 0.6 7.4 7.5 4.8 13.1 13.6 -1.9 7.0 7.4
MoD 15.5 19.9 18.6 16.5 22.0 20.6 16.6 23.9 22.5
Total 10.8 15.9 15.1 12.9 19.2 18.4 10.9 18.7 17.8

Table 5: Government estate: energy and cost indicator16
Energy Indicator Cost indicator
Fossil fuel kWMm2 Electricity kWh/m2 Fossil fuel £/m2 Electricity £/m2
Civil Departments, including Agencies 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97
MAFF "Main estate"4 286 151 148 81 94 91 3.58 1.89 1.85 4.88 5.64 5.46
MAFF—Laboratories 578 628 485 235 315 233 7.23 7.85 6.06 14.09 18.90 13.87
Cabinet Office 291 176 157 94 95 116 3.63 2.20 1.96 5.65 5.68 6.96
Culture, Media and Spor10 156 174 153 141 150 169 1.96 2.18 1.91 8.48 8.99 10.15
Customs and Excise 161 84 91 130 113 126 2.01 1.05 1.14 7.80 6.78 7.58
Education and Employment 166 120 120 152 178 193 2.08 1.50 1.50 9.13 10.71 11.59
Employment Service 220 182 168 82 87 93 2.74 2.27 2.10 4.91 5.23 5.59
Environmen5 282 169 181 87 88 99 3.53 2.11 2.27 5.23 5.25 5.92
Environment—HSE6 187 182 158 103 84 81 2.34 2.27 1.98 6.20 5.02 4.85
Environment—QEII CC2.6 153 233 165 270 272 272 1.91 2.91 2.06 16.21 16.30 16.32
FCO 218 168 183 145 183 194 2.73 2.10 2.29 8.71 10.97 11.61
Health2 174 116 103 107 197 188 2.17 1.45 1.28 6.42 11.82 11.26
Home Office 312 297 295 136 143 138 3.90 3.71 3.69 8.18 8.58 8.28
Home Office—Prisons2 507 446 431 69 82 83 6.36 5.57 5.39 4.15 4.89 4.96
Inland Revenue 166 127 146 105 92 87 2.08 1.59 1.83 6.33 5.51 5.24
International Development9 381 411 271 220 182 137 4.77 5.14 3.39 13.23 10.92 8.23
Lord Chancellor's Department 259 181 181 108 105 102 3.24 2.26 2.26 6.50 6.31 6.12
National Savings 191 156 184 208 168 149 2.39 1.96 2.31 12.49 10.10 8.93
Northern Ireland 234 193 195 109 97 101 2.92 2.41 2.44 6.53 5.84 6.16
Scottish Office8 258 211 208 91 126 126 3.22 2.63 2.60 5.45 7.57 7.53
Scottish Court Service8 163 100 100 64 45 45 2.03 1.25 1.25 3.86 2.70 2.70
Scottish Prison Service 533 451 474 67 72 75 6.67 5.64 5.92 4.04 4.29 4.50
Social Security11 278 207 227 103 113 121 3.48 2.59 2.84 6.20 6.76 7.29
Trade and Industry 372 122 124 196 157 136 4.65 1.53 1.54 11.77 9.40 8.17
Transport5.12 196 134 105 114 103 97 2.45 1.68 1.31 6.84 6.18 5.81
Treasury 248 208 201 107 107 122 3.09 2.60 2.51 6.40 6.40 7.30

Table 5: Government estate: energy and cost indicator16
Energy Indicator Cost indicator
Fossil fuel kWh/m2 Electricity kWh/m2 Fossil fuel £/m2 Electricity £/m2
Civil Departments, including Agencies 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97 1990–91 1995–96 1996–97
Welsh Office 158 98 108 126 133 131 1.97 1.22 1.35 7.55 8.00 7.89
Total 302 253 255 99 101 102 3.78 3.17 3.18 5.91 6.08 6.12
Footnotes to Tables:
1 Progress is expressed as a percentage relative to the 1990–91 base year value of the performance indicator in question. Positive figures represent improvement. The standard indicator, against which the target to improve energy efficiency by 20 per cent, by 31 March 2000 is measured, is obtained by weather-correcting energy consumption and converting to costs using "standard prices" for fuel (6p/k W/h for electricity and 1.25 p/kWh for all fossil fuels) then dividing by floor area. Conversion to money both reflects the relative costs of electricity and fossil fuel and their environmental impact, and the use of fixed prices eliminates the effects of tariff changes which distort the comparison of fuel bills.
2 Although figures have been prepared on a consistent basis, caution should be exercised in comparing the energy use of different departments and agencies because of differences in their estate and the nature of their work. For example, the operational needs of prisons and the QEII Conference Centre mean than they have a pattern of energy use which is different from that of a department which has predominantly office accommodation. Expenditure on energy and investment figures are included for information only. Investment figures relate to clearly identifiable energy efficiency measures undertaken by departments. Energy efficiency is an integral part of all major construction projects, including building refurbishment and plant replacement and the figure "0" for some departments does not necessarily mean there has been no investment, just that the investment was not clearly identifiable.
3 The average performance figure for the civil estate cannot be derived by simply adding together the individual departmental progress and dividing by the number of departments because this does not allow for the large variations in consumption. The correct figure is obtained by calculating the value of the performance indicator for the year in question and the base year, for the civil estate as a whole, and calculating the reduction relative to the base year.
4 The energy performance for MAFF's "Main estate" and its laboratories continues to improve with ongoing investment in energy schemes, continued staff awareness programmes and changes to estate classification and further rationalisation in 1996–97.
5 Last full year for the former Environment and Transport Departments. The former Environment Department now has a greater proportion of air-conditioned buildings than in the base year, because of estate rationalisation, relocation to new HQ buildings and inclusion of some Government Offices for the Regions.
6 HSE was removed from the DFEE estate on the formation of that Department. QEII Conference Centre is reported separately because of its business-led demands. The initial sharp rise in consumption following the 1990–91 base year was directly attributable to increased revenue earning activity, which has continued throughout the reporting period, and the more recent decline in consumption reflects the effect of energy conservation measures undertaken at the site.
7 Rationalisation of the estate since the base year has led to staff moving from several naturally ventilated buildings to more densely occupied air-conditioned buildings, all equipped with information technology equipment.
8 Base year is 1991–92.
9 Base year in 1991–92. Data for Natural Resources Institute no longer included following its transfer to the University of Greenwich.
10 Base year is 1994–95, by which time energy efficient lighting and other improvements already installed in buildings which are already fully air-conditioned with intensive IT usage.
11 Workload is increasing, affecting occupancy and requiring offices to be occupied for longer, increasing the use of energy. Greater use of information technology, expansion of the use of air conditioning and the upgrading of lighting levels has increased electricity consumption.
12 Figures exclude the Vehicle Inspectorate Agency.
13 The Ministry of Defence (MoD) estate is different from the rest of the government estate, and has been undergoing more radical changes.
It is therefore treated in a slightly different way. In common with the civil estate, it has greatly increased its use of information technology.
Full data for the years between 1990–91 and 1993–94 are not available, so the table shows the results for 1994–95 onwards.
14 Floor area cannot be calculated for the majority of the MoD estate. However, to enable comparisons with data for the civil estate which is adjusted for changes in floor area, a proxy has been used. Changes in consumption arising from estate changes have been estimated as a result of estate adjustments, with appropriate adjustments made to the gross data for the years following the change. In common with other Departments, the MoD has a target to achieve a 20 per cent, improvement by 31 March 2000. Positive figures represent improvement.
15 This shows the combined results for the whole of the government estate based on the data in tables 1, 2 and 3. It is not a simple average af the data but reflects the proportion of total consumption represented by each part of the estate (see also note 3). Some departments have i different base year, and the individually agreed base year has been used for the purposes of this table, where appropriate.
16 In some instances the base year is not 1990–91, but for the purposes of Tables 2 and 5 the agreed base year has been used in the calculation.