Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment she has made of the potential for green mortgages and other lending products to incentivise energy efficiency among home-owners.

Green finance, including green mortgages, has the potential to play a vital role in the transition to a net zero economy. In the Building a Market for Energy Efficiency call for evidence we sought evidence on the barriers to the uptake of energy efficiency, including access to finance. The responses we received showed that while some green finance products are already available, for the most part these remain specialist products and are not yet widely offered. Based on the responses received, in the Green Finance Strategy we announced a £5 million Green Home Finance Innovation Fund that will support the development and piloting of innovative green finance products and committed to consult on requirements for lenders to support homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of homes in their portfolios. We have also ensured that Energy Performance Certificate data is available to support financial institutions in product development.