Written question asked by Brian Jenkins (Labour) on Tuesday, 28 November 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 30 November 2006. It was answered by Ian Pearson (Labour) on Thursday, 7 December 2006 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Energy Efficiency

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what further plans the Government have for encouraging households to improve their insulation.

Answer: Under the Energy Efficiency Commitment (EEC), we require energy suppliers to meet targets for the promotion of improvements in household energy efficiency. They do this by encouraging and assisting household consumers to take up measures like cavity wall and loft insulation.During the first half of the current EEC (2005-08), 88 per cent. of supplier activity was through insulation measures. The 2006 Climate Change Programme announced that the EEC target will be increased by 50-100 per cent. for EEC3 (2008-11) and we would expect that insulation will be a major part of the work.In addition to this, the Government funded Warm Front Scheme, which is the key programme in tackling fuel poverty in England, provides a range of insulation measures to those households qualifying for assistance. The Energy Saving Trust (which is supported by Government funding) carries out work to inform and encourage households to take up energy efficiency measures including insulation.

Secondary information