Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of households in Wales affected by (a) charges which represent a significant proportion of their income and (b) poor standards of workmanship under the Energy Company Obligation Scheme since July 2022.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) places a requirement on larger energy suppliers to deliver heating and insulation measures to eligible low-income and fuel poor households. Energy suppliers recoup delivery costs through consumer bills.
Homes benefitting from ECO4 will cut approximately £430 off their energy bills.
The Department does not hold data on the number of households affected by poor standards of workmanship under ECO. Through the ongoing evaluation of ECO4, we are gathering feedback from a sample of households on their satisfaction with installations.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Energy Company Obligation redress schemes in ensuring that households receive fair and timely redress for problems arising from the scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The scheme administrator, Ofgem has set out a comprehensive route to redress for any issues arising from measures installed under the scheme, which can be found at: www.ofgem.gov.uk/eco4-complaints-process.
In response to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) green heating and insulation review, the government also announced work which is being undertaken to improve consumer protection. A link to the government’s written statement of 21 February 2024 can be found here.
We remain fully committed to protecting all consumers undertaking home retrofit work.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the protection afforded to households who are affected by poor standard of workmanship provided by the companies under the Energy Company Obligation Scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As part of the ongoing evaluation of the current iteration of the Energy Company Obligation, ECO4, we are gathering feedback from a sample of households on their satisfaction with installations. Installation companies must be registered with TrustMark, the UK Government endorsed Quality Scheme for home improvements. TrustMark registered businesses are required to adhere to Publicly Available Specification (PAS) standards, providing a warranty to the householder when a measure is installed in case something goes wrong. Ofgem, the scheme administrator, has a route to redress for consumers should they be dissatisfied with the measures delivered.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Energy Company Obligation Scheme in ensuring that households receive an acceptable quality of service by companies under the scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As part of the ongoing evaluation of the current iteration of the Energy Company Obligation scheme, ECO4, we are gathering feedback from a sample of households on their satisfaction with the installation of energy efficiency measures.
Installations of measures under ECO4 are carried out by TrustMark registered businesses and must adhere to the industry-developed Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2035/2030 standards.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the protection afforded to households who are affected by high charges from companies operating under the Energy Company Obligation Scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) places a requirement on larger energy suppliers to deliver heating and insulation measures to eligible households. Energy suppliers are assumed to recoup the cost of delivery through consumer bills. Homes benefitting from ECO4 are assumed to cut an average of £430 off their annual energy bills based on the latest price cap.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of including HGV drivers as (a) an eligible occupation for a skilled worker visa and (b) on the immigration salary list.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The occupation of HGV driver does not meet the requirements of the Skilled Worker visa route.
The Government intend to commission the Migration Advisory Committee to undertake a full review of the Immigration Salary List. The Government will carefully consider their recommendations once received, should they make one regarding HGV drivers.
The Government regularly monitors labour market data to review the labour needed in different sectors, however there are no plans to extend the scope of the Seasonal Worker route.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a seasonal visa scheme for qualified HGV drivers.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The occupation of HGV driver does not meet the requirements of the Skilled Worker visa route.
The Government intend to commission the Migration Advisory Committee to undertake a full review of the Immigration Salary List. The Government will carefully consider their recommendations once received, should they make one regarding HGV drivers.
The Government regularly monitors labour market data to review the labour needed in different sectors, however there are no plans to extend the scope of the Seasonal Worker route.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the passport application process for adopted people who do not have access to parental birth records.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
His Majesty’s Passport Office engages with customers on a case-by-case basis where they tell us they are unable to obtain supporting documents, including adopted persons who are unable to access birth records.
Published HM Passport Office guidance provides advice to customers and passport examiners in considering these cases and what alternative evidence can be accepted when required.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress he has made on establishment of the residential women’s centre in Swansea.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Planning approval for the Residential Women’s Centre at the Trehafod site in Cockett, Swansea, was granted by the Welsh Government’s Planning Environment Decisions Wales in August 2023, following an appeal by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). Due to delays and uncertainty in securing this planning approval, the MoJ has a number of ongoing steps to re-mobilise the project and continues to work closely with partners in Wales.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of single justice procedure notices.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
HMCTS assessed the Single Justice Procedure Notice (SJPN) following a pilot with two prosecutors, the Metropolitan Police Service and TV Licensing, between December 2019 and February 2020 where a redesigned SJPN was trialled.
The SJPN was redesigned to encourage engagement. The pilot assessment showed that this was successful as the online plea rates and form completion improved following the redesigned SJPN. As a result of this there was an agreement to rollout the revised notice to all prosecutors who use the Single Justice Procedure.
Details of the assessment were published on 29 July 2022 and can be found by following the link: HMCTS single justice procedure notice pilots assessment - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).