Climate Change and SustainableEnergy Bill

I, too, extend my sympathies to my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh, North and Leith (Mark Lazarowicz) and condolences to his family. I am delighted to support the Bill, which has received support not only in Parliament, but from hundreds of our constituents, who have written to us to express their hope that it gets through Parliament during the current Session. I commend my hon. Friend for his hard work and dedication to passing the Bill through the House of Commons. It marks an important step by Parliament in ensuring that energy efficiency and the increase in renewable sources remain high on our political agenda. The reasons for that priority have been well stated, and they include the effects of climate change and the increase in energy costs in the past few years, particularly for oil and gas. I welcome the proposals as part of the important effort to ensure that the gains we have made in the past few years to eliminate fuel poverty are not lost. A recent report by Energy Action Scotland highlighted the scale and complexity of the task in future fuel poverty schemes. Scotland faces unique problems. In 2003, average earnings were12 per cent. lower than in England. As a result of the difference in climate, it has a much longer heating season: a home in the north of Scotland may spend68 per cent. more on fuel a year than an equivalent property in the south of England. In London we are basking in unusually high temperatures for May, but this weekend, temperatures in the north of Scotland are predicted to drop to minus 5° C at night,which demonstrates the difference in temperatures throughout the United Kingdom. Scotland has many properties that are not on the main gas grid, and they are not likely to be connected. Although gas central heating is the most effective measure in removing a house from fuel poverty, 33 per cent. of homes in Scotland do not have any gas, because either they are located in remote rural locations or they are high-rise accommodation, where it is not appropriate to use gas. The nature, type and design of housing is different from housing in England. Although about 70 per cent. of houses in both countries have cavity walls, in Scotland, 23 per cent. are traditional sandstone or granite houses, with an additional 10 per cent. classified as non-traditional. All of those are hard to heat. Energy Action Scotland has identified three main factors that contribute to fuel poverty, and we should not find any of them surprising. The first factor is domestic fuel prices; on average, a 5 per cent. rise in fuel prices results in a further 30,000 households being pushed back into fuel poverty. Secondly, disposable income is important. The third factor is energy efficiency.