§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many households in the Isle of Wight have benefited from the(a) Home Energy Efficiency Scheme and (b) HEES Plus since 1 June. [16121]
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 19 November 2001]: The home energy efficiency scheme (HEES) was launched on 1 June 2000. It is managed by two scheme managers, Eaga Partnership and TXU Warm Front Ltd., and offers two levels of grant:
HEES—£1,000 for households with children under 16 and in receipt of an income-related, disability or long-term illness benefit.HEES Plus—£2,000 for over-60s in receipt of an income-related benefit.The table shows the number of householders, on the Isle of Wight, who have benefited from either a HEES or HEES Plus grant since the launch of the scheme on 1 June 2000.
HEES Isle of Wight householders who have received help Householders 660 Plus householders 590
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many complaints have been received in(a) England, (b) the South East and (c) the Isle of Wight in respect of work carried out in the home energy efficiency scheme. [16124]
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 19 November 2001]: Over 250,000 householders have been assisted since the launch of the home energy efficiency scheme (HEES) on 1 June 2000. The table shows the number of complaints received by the scheme managers, Eaga Partnership and TXU Warm Front Ltd., concerning work carried out either in respect of workmanship or faulty equipment. The total number of complaints is 4,700.
688W
Complaints received concerning work carried out Percentage of total number of householders completed since 1 June 2000 England 1,400 0.5 South East 220 0.08 Isle of Wight 11 0.004
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many households have made a financial contribution to work carried out under the home energy efficiency scheme since 1 June. [16119]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 19 November 2001]: The home energy efficiency scheme (HEES) was launched on 1 June 2000. It is managed by two scheme managers, Eaga Partnership and TXU Warm Front Ltd., and offers two levels of grant:
HEES—£1,000 for households with children under 16 and in receipt of an income-related, disability or long-term illness benefit.HEES Plus—£2,000 for over-60s in receipt of an income-related benefit.Where the grant is insufficient to meet the full cost of work the appointed scheme manager will attempt to obtain contributions from other programmes funds such as energy suppliers' energy efficiency commitment schemes. If that is unsuccessful the client will be asked to make the appropriate contribution. Of the 250,000 householders assisted since the start of the scheme, 6,900 (or 3 per cent. of the total) made such a contribution.
We will shortly review the grant levels taking into account advice from the scheme managers on the expected rates of labour and materials for the forthcoming year.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many households in(a) England and (b) the Isle of Wight have qualified for the full grant of £2,000 in respect of the home energy efficiency scheme. [16117]
689W
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 19 November 2001]: The home energy efficiency scheme (HEES) was launched on 1 June 2000. It is managed by two scheme managers, Eaga Partnership and TXU Warm Front Ltd., and offers two levels of grant:
HEES—£1,000 for households in receipt of an income-related benefit.HEES Plus—£2,000 for over-60s in receipt of an income-related benefit.The table identifies the number of households who have qualified for the HEES Plus grant.
HEES Plus householders Number England 152,200 Isle of Wight 840
§ Mr. ChaytorTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what assessment she has made of the annual energy savings which would result from the application of minimum energy performance standards as envisaged by the proposed EC Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings to new residential and commercial buildings; [12101]
(2) if she will estimate the annual energy savings which would result from the application of minimum energy performance standards as envisaged by the proposed EC Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings to renovation projects on buildings (a) larger than 1000 square metres, (b) larger than 500 square metres and (c) larger than 100 square metres. [12103]
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 8 November 2001]: In England and Wales, it is envisaged that the minimum energy performance standards provisions of the draft Energy Performance of Buildings Directive would be implemented through Part L of the Building Regulations, which are estimated to provide annual savings of 1.45 MtC (about 2 per cent.) from improved standards for new buildings and refurbishment of existing buildings.
For the European Community as a whole, the European Commission has estimated that the potential energy savings through energy efficiency measures in buildings as a result of the draft Directive would be around 22 per cent. of present consumption, and that this could be realised by the year 2010. Data have not been made available by the Commission on savings for each of the individual measures in the proposal.
§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer of 9 November 2001,Official Report, column 452W, on warm front grants, if her Department has received representations from other sources; and if she will publish for each of the last three years for which information is available, by region (a) the average cost of work under the scheme and (b) the maximum level set for grants paid for individual householders. [15181]
690W
§ Mr. Meacher[holding answer 15 November 2001]: The new Home Energy Efficiency Scheme (HEES) was launched on 1 June 2000 and is marketed as the Warm Front Team. HEES provides two levels of financial assistance:
HEES—£1,000 for low income households with children under 16, disabled persons or suffering long-term sickness on a qualifying benefit; andHEES Plus—£2,000 for over-60s on an income-related benefit.In addition, HEES Plus recipients who live in a Home Office designated high crime area may be able to have security measures—door and window locks—provided, though from separate Home Office grant.
The Department keeps the level of grant maximum for individuals under review. From time to time representations are received from trade associations. In addition, the two appointed scheme managers monitor the cost of measures being installed under HEES, taking into account material and labour costs in their appointed areas.
The tables identify the average cost of work in each of the four regions for the 2000–01 to 2001–02 financial years.
HEES—£1,000 grant maximum £ Region Average cost of grants 2000–01 Average cost of grants 2001–02 London and South East 240 300 Eastern, East Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber 270 280 South West and West Midlands 270 300 North West and North East 270 310
HEES—£2,000 grant maximum £ Region Average cost of grants 2000–01 Average cost of grants 2001–02 London and South East 270 650 Eastern, East Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber 460 510 South West and West Midlands 280 850 North West and North East 360 810