Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the average cost to install a heat source pump to replace an existing gas boiler in a standard three bedroom semi-detached home.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Based on the best available evidence, the Government estimates the current total cost of installing an air source heat pump to replace a gas boiler in an average three-bedroom semi-detached house to be around £10,500. However, as the market develops, heat pump installation costs are expected to fall. In the Heat and Buildings Strategy, the Government set an ambition to reduce the upfront costs of installing a heat pump by 25-50% by 2025.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what comparative estimate his Department has made of the typical cost of (a) retrofitting eight solar panels to a home and (b) installing eight solar panels at the time of building a new home.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The cost of installing a domestic solar PV system varies with the type of solar panels, space for installation and roof design. In December 2021, the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities published indicative data on costs for fitting solar panel systems on new homes. The fixed cost to install a solar PV system of under 4kW capacity system is £1,100, with a variable cost of £600 for each kW installed[1]. Data published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in May 2021 indicate the mean cost per kW for installations smaller than 4kW, whether new build or retrofit, has reduced from £2,080 in 2013/14 to £ 1,628 per kW installed in 2020/21[2].
Research by consumers’ association Which?[3] and the Energy Savings Trust estimates that the cost of a typical domestic solar installation of 3.5kW capacity and comprising 10 to 15 panels, is around £4,800 [4].
[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solar-pv-cost-data
[3] https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/solar-panels/article/solar-panels/solar-panel-costs-aDxBY2v7kr60
[4] https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/solar-panels/#jumpto-17 and https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/solar-panels/
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will delay the deadline for businesses to switch to UK conformity assessments for pyrotechnics by at least one year.
Answered by Paul Scully
We are working closely with the UK Accreditation Service (UKAS) to ensure that a UK approved body for pyrotechnics is accredited as soon as possible.
We are also aware that pyrotechnics bodies are currently engaging with UKAS and are in the process of getting accredited.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support trade in services with EU countries.
Answered by Paul Scully
The Government is committed to supporting UK businesses to adjust to our new relationship with the European Union. We continue to signpost businesses and trade associations to information on how to best adapt to the changes through a variety of means.
We have published GOV.UK guidance to support businesses providing services to the EU, EEA and Switzerland. This includes enhanced guidance on Member States’ immigration systems providing UK business travellers with a better understanding of visa and work permit requirements (www.gov.uk/government/collections/travelling-to-the-eu-switzerland-norway-iceland-or-liechtenstein-for-work) and a tool which UK businesses can use to check for relevant reservations as they sell services to customers in EU member states (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/uk-eu-trade-and-cooperation-agreement-reservations).
We will continue to work closely with businesses, including with the Professional Business Services sector, to gather insights and to ensure the Government continues to provide businesses with the support they need in our new trading relationship with the EU.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on ensuring that employers are aware that (a) international postgraduate students and (b) other international students studying remotely will still be eligible for a post-study work visa if their degree does not finish during the 2020-21 academic year.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
BEIS is working closely with the Home Office and the Department for Education on visas, including the new Graduate route to attract and retain talent. Students will normally be expected to undertake their studies in the UK to be eligible for the Graduate route. However, if students are required to either continue their current studies or commence a new course by distance or blended learning due to Covid-19, they will still be eligible to switch into the Graduate route on a concessionary basis if they spent some time studying outside the UK, provided they meet the other eligibility criteria.
The Government have published guidance which covers these temporary concessions for students and student sponsors, and an introductory guide for employers that provides an overview of the new immigration system and the steps employers can take to prepare.
Successful applicants on the Graduate route, scheduled to be launched in summer 2021, will be able to stay and work, or look for work, in the UK at any skill level for a maximum period of two years. Graduates will be able to switch into skilled work once they have found a suitable job.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many households have applied for a free heat pump as part of the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project; and how many of those heat pumps have been installed to date.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
As part of the Department’s £505 million Energy Innovation Programme, the £14.6 million Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project will showcase the feasibility of installing heat pumps in a range of homes across the UK.
The Project has attracted over 4,500 expressions of interest since the three regional delivery partners were announced in Summer 2020. Installations have only recently begun – following delays caused by coronavirus – but as of Thursday 19 November 2020, 19 installations had been completed.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the biggest factor has been in households not installing a heat pump under the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
As part of the Department’s £505 million Energy Innovation Programme, the £14.6 million Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project will showcase the feasibility of installing heat pumps in a range of homes across the UK. Installations have only recently begun – following delays caused by coronavirus – so it is too early to draw definitive conclusions.
As part of the project we will assess the reasons given by households for not progressing from survey to installation. We are also exploring where innovation can overcome any challenges through the Demonstration Project.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the estimated cost is of the energy efficiency retrofit requirements for households wishing to install a heat pump under the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
As part of the Department’s £505 million Energy Innovation Programme, the £14.6 million Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project will showcase the feasibility of installing heat pumps in a range of homes across the UK. Installations have only recently begun – following delays caused by coronavirus – so it is too early to provide robust evidence on the cost of the energy efficiency retrofit requirements for households participating in the Project.
Under the Project, if any building upgrade measures are required then they are capped at £5,000 per property, except in exceptional circumstances, and this has not been a major impediment to homes participating in the Project to date. However, it is acknowledged that some homes with high heat demand and poor insulation, may require significant investment in energy efficiency measures to make them suitable for a heat pump. We are exploring where innovation can overcome this challenge through the Demonstration Project.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many heat pumps have been installed in off gas grid homes under the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
As part of the Department’s £505 million Energy Innovation Programme, the £14.6 million Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project will showcase the feasibility of installing heat pumps in a range of homes across the UK, but will focus largely on homes connected to the gas network.
The Project has a target that at least 85 per cent of heat pumps installed under this project will be in homes that currently use gas as their primary heating fuel. Installations have only recently begun – following delays caused by coronavirus – but as of Thursday 19 November 2020, 19 installations had been completed, all of which were in homes that previously used gas as their primary heating fuel.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of types of homes least suitable to having a heat pump installed as part of the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project.
Answered by Kwasi Kwarteng
As part of the Department’s £505 million Energy Innovation Programme, the Electrification of Heat Demonstration Project will showcase the feasibility of installing heat pumps in a range of homes across the UK. Installations have only recently begun – following delays caused by coronavirus – so it is too early to draw definitive conclusions, however, early evidence indicates that a large proportion of homes are suitable for heat pumps.
We acknowledge that some housing archetypes may pose specific challenges to the deployment of heat pumps. For example, some terraced houses and flats may have limited space for an air-source heat pump outdoor unit. While homes with high heat demand and poor insulation, may require significant investment in energy efficiency measures to make them suitable. We are exploring where innovation can overcome some of these challenges through the Demonstration Project.