Written question asked by Llew Smith (Labour) on Monday, 23 February 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 1 March 2004. It was answered by Phil Hope (Labour) on Monday, 1 March 2004 on behalf of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister

Question: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what research was undertaken on problems created by summertime overheating of lightweight buildings prior to the decision to encourage registered social landlords to use factory-built houses.

Answer: Llew Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what research was undertaken on problems created by summertime overheating of lightweight buildings prior to the decision to encourage registered social landlords to use factory-built houses. [156640] Phil Hope: No specific research into summertime overheating of lightweight buildings was commissioned. The Government and the construction industry were aware of research reports from hotter countries of problems of overheating that can occur in houses of lightweight construction, but this was not considered to be relevant to the decision to encourage the use of modern methods of construction in England and Wales. Nevertheless, the issue of overheating for all types of buildings is being addressed in the review of the Building Regulations announced in the Energy White Paper.

Secondary information