§ Mr. Linsteadasked the Minister of Fuel and Power what is the estimated annual saving of fuel when a stove is substituted for an open fireplace; and what action he is taking, in consultation with the Departments concerned, on the lines indicated by the Professor of Thermodynamics in the University of Oxford for the installation of stoves in place of open fireplaces in Government offices and in other places under public control.
§ Mr. P. Noel-BakerI assume that the hon. Member's Question arises from the suggestion concerning "Open Fires" contained in the article by Dr. F. E. Simon in the "Financial Times" of 5th January, 1951. Burned in an improved openable stove, 19½ cwt. of coal will produce as much useful heat as 34 cwt. of coal burned in a pre-war stool-bottom grate.
So far as concerns Government offices, my right hon. Friend the Minister of Works has formulated a forward programme providing for the replacement of over 5,000 old-fashioned grates by improved stoves during the next 12 months. Other authorities have been approached with a similar object in view. Central heating is the most efficient means of providing space heating for large buildings, and the use of this method will continue to be pressed where appropriate.