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Planning and Energy Bill

My hon. Friend makes an important point. Amendment No. 12, which follows this group of new clauses, suggests that we be a little more flexible about the commencement date so that we can take account of such matters, and can consider whether we are ready to introduce the mechanisms straight away, or whether they would have the unintended consequence of reducing housing supply. That is an important consideration. There is no doubt that new construction offers the opportunity to pump-prime new on-site technologies and develop cost-effective systems, particularly in urban areas, where we will potentially be developing at much higher densities. In Mill Hill in my constituency, we are considering a major development of about 2,500 homes, according to the latest tally, on the former Ministry of Defence site at Inglis barracks. My hon. Friend may be familiar with the site, as the British Forces Post Office has just moved from there to a site in the general direction of his constituency or a little bit beyond it, near Northolt. The point is that as part of the overall plan for the area, we were trying to see what could be done to make the development much more energy-efficient. That is the right way to go, because it is much easier to ensure energy efficiency in major, large-scale new developments than on small-scale developments. The Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology told me that in general terms the cost of building an energy-efficient home is £1,500 per sq m; for a normal, or non-energy-efficient, home, the figure is £1,000 per sq m. The best example of what can be achieved is the result of the challenge set by the former Deputy Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull—I forget what bit of Hull he represents—