§ Mr. ColvinTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment which of his Ministers has been given responsibility for energy use by his Department; and what is his brief regarding energy efficiency.
§ Mr. ForthThe Minister responsible for energy use is Viscount Ullswater, a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.
He has a dual role—
(1) As the departmental representative on the ministerial group on energy efficiency, which is chaired by the Secretary of State for Energy, he contributes to the implementation of the Government's policy to promote energy awareness and efficiency throughout the public and private sectors of the economy.(2) As the Minister responsible for this Department's energy strategy he oversees the implementation of the strategy, the main objective of which is to reduce energy use by 15 per cent. over the next five years. He encourages energy awareness and efficiency in those areas of the economy where the Department has a sponsoring role—training and enterprise, tourism and small firms. He, with other Ministers in the Department of Employment, promotes energy awareness and efficiency at appropriate occasions during official visits and speeches.