§ Mr. CarmichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 23 February 2004,Official Report, column 127W, on the Carbon Trust, how much money the Trust has loaned in total to small and medium enterprises for energy efficiency projects in each of the last five years. [157824]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Action Energy Loan scheme for small and medium enterprises began operating in the 2003–04 financial year. The cumulative value of offers to date (including those committed but not necessarily paid out) is £2,887,000 and actual payments (excluding committed but not yet paid) is £2,305,000.
§ Mr. CarmichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment. Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of the Carbon Trust's budget has been allocated to projects in Scotland in each of the last five years; and what steps her Department takes to assess the effectiveness of work undertaken by the Carbon Trust. [158216]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Carbon Trust is a private company launched in 2001 as part of the Climate Change Levy package. The Trust receives grant funding from Defra for the non-domestic element of the UK wide Energy Efficiency Best Practice Programme (EEBPp), and from1004W the Climate Change Levy via Defra for England and via separate grant offer relationships with the Devolved Administrations. Therefore queries regarding projects carried out in Scotland should be addressed to the Scottish Executive.
A formal review of the Climate Change Programme is planned for 2004 that will include an assessment of the contribution of the Carbon Trust towards climate change targets. The Carbon Trust has undertaken an impact assessment of their programmes as part of their Annual Review which is available via their website www.thecarbontrust.co.uk.