Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alex Cunningham and Lord Barker of Battle

Thursday 17th October 2013 Commons Chamber

[The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)]

For the first time ever, the UK now has a national energy efficiency strategy. This is something no Government have put in place before. Helping to cut energy bills is at the heart of this drive through the green deal, energy company obligation, electricity market reform, smart meter roll-out and support for innovation, research and development. They all demonstrate the Government’s determination to drive unprecedented investment into energy efficiency.

[Alex Cunningham]

I think that just 25 people have benefited from the green deal in my constituency so far, but thousands of people across Stockton-on-Tees could have warmer homes thanks to a tremendous project to externally clad their homes run by the borough council and deliverer partner, Go Warm. This has attracted £20 million of investment and 300 jobs. Sadly, a legal judgment means that BT is the only company that can remove the eyelets that support the wires in the houses that are benefiting from the scheme. This is slowing the programme down because of insufficient resources to do the work in a reasonable time. Will the Minister please intervene, tell BT to get its act together, get the work done more quickly and give my constituents the warmth they deserve?

[Gregory Barker]

The hon. Gentleman raises a legitimate point about BT. I will certainly look at this in more detail and would be happy to meet him to discuss it. We want to press ahead. We have an ambitious efficiency programme, which is led by the energy company obligation. We believe that through a combination of the ECO and the green deal, nearly 250,000 people will have seen their homes improve by Christmas.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alex Cunningham and Lord Barker of Battle

Thursday 31st January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

17. What assessment he has made of changes in the level of fuel poverty since 2010.

[The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)]

The latest annual fuel poverty publication estimates that during the first year of the coalition Government, fuel poverty fell by 500,000 to 3.5 million households in England. It is projected that the number of households in fuel poverty remained the same in 2011, but may rise again in 2012.

--- Later in debate ---

[Gregory Barker]

We are working collaboratively with local authorities up and down the country, which have a key role to play in delivering the green deal and ECO. It is by an area-based, street-by-street roll-out, rather than by chasing gas prices, that in the long term we will deal with fuel poverty once and for all.

[Alex Cunningham]

My local borough, Stockton-on-Tees, is a national leader in tackling fuel poverty—we have had a warm zone initiative, a go warm campaign and now a hard-to-heat homes campaign—but it takes real investment to make these things happen. Energy companies are using consumers’ money to promote and install energy efficiency measures, but why will the Government not do the right thing and restore Government investment in energy efficiency measures, instead of leaving it to expensive loans that will cost consumers more than they might save?

[Gregory Barker]

By and large, consumers and taxpayers tend to be the same people. We are determined to get far better value out of our energy poverty eradication programmes than the previous Government did, and we will demonstrate that by getting more measures taken for less and bringing in competition. The green deal will, for the first time, let the fuel poor make real choices, as opposed to the monopoly one-size-fits-all solution of the previous Government.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alex Cunningham and Lord Barker of Battle

Thursday 17th May 2012 Commons Chamber

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

21. What steps he is taking to help households improve their energy efficiency.

[The Minister of State, Department of Energy and Climate Change (Gregory Barker)]

The launch of the green deal this autumn will put in place the biggest and most ambitious energy efficiency programme Britain has ever seen. Furthermore, we anticipate that our electricity market reforms will create further opportunities for large-scale investment in energy efficiency projects.

[Alex Cunningham]

Last year, nearly 30,000 households that applied for help through Warm Front were turned down even though the budget had an underspend of more than £50 million. Will the Minister take this opportunity to apologise to all the families who were left in the cold last winter because of his Department’s incompetence?

[Gregory Barker]

We need to send a very clear message from this House that Warm Front remains open. Certainly, the scaremongering from the Opposition last winter that Warm Front had closed and was no longer available was extremely unhelpful. That was coupled with a very mild winter, but one message that I want to get over is that Warm Front remains open and that those who think they can benefit from it should definitely apply.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alex Cunningham and Lord Barker of Battle

Thursday 16th September 2010 Commons Chamber

[Gregory Barker]

The hon. Gentleman has very cleverly put his finger right on the key divide between the last, failed Government and the new coalition. We believe, ultimately, that the recovery, our wealth and new jobs will come from the private sector; Labour Members believe that all our jobs should come from the public sector. We will put in the framework, but wealth creation in the green economy will come from the private sector.

[Alex Cunningham (Stockton North) (Lab)]

18. What recent discussions he has had with Ofgem on revisions to licensing conditions for energy suppliers to improve monitoring of the links between wholesale, retail and domestic energy prices.