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Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Bill

That would be dealt with by the overall planning system. My hon. Friend the Minister for Housing and Planning has heard the hon. Gentleman’s question. Perhaps she will find an ingenious way of noting the issue. That might be the best way of dealing with it. We have tabled amendments Nos. 53 and 55, which are consequential amendments that will be required if new clause 4 becomes part of the Bill. Amendment (a) to new clause 4, and amendments Nos. 2, 14 and 21 all seek to remove references to fuel poverty. I do not wish to spend too much time on that, but for the record, let me explain why alleviating fuel poverty deserves to remain a key purpose of the Bill. What we call fuel poverty—we can argue about the terminology—undoubtedly damages people’s quality of life and imposes wider costs on the community. People who are struggling to afford to heat their homes might face difficult decisions between keeping warm and other basic necessities. They suffer an increased chance of ill health and find it more difficult to recover if they do fall ill. Fuel poverty imposes higher health costs and is a factor in the thousands of excess winter deaths each year, particularly among elderly people. It also contributes to social exclusion and affects children’s education.