Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken protect (a) consumers and (b) public health by standards set by certification bodies in the wood stove industry.

Defra has set requirements for burning solid fuels in Smoke Control Areas. Households can either burn authorised solid fuels or use an exempt appliance using only fuels specified by the manufacturer.

The introduction of the Air Quality (Domestic Solid Fuels Standards) (England) Regulations 2020 phases out the supply of more polluting fuels, in particular wet wood and coal, and introduces emission limits for all manufactured solid fuels. As air quality is a devolved matter this legislation applies in England only.

As of the 1 January 2022, only Eco design-compliant stoves can be placed on the UK market.

We are aware that, outside of the appointed certification bodies, there are industry-led certification schemes for domestic stoves which are intended to encourage manufacturers to achieve higher than minimum standards.