Energy Bill

Of course we have to pay heed to the costs, but what is frustrating is the speed at which that is being done. The issue has been addressed in the House on many occasions. On Second Reading, I think that every single Member who spoke talked about smart meters and the need for progress. We find that the next consultation will not conclude until the end of the year, but we simply do not have time on our side. Yes, there is a debate to be had. Centrica's submission to us cited research carried out by Frontier Economics showing that there was a positive cost-benefit to the consumer through the roll-out of smart meters of £3.5 billion by 2020 owing to the energy savings that would be made. The figures are out there and views have been formed. It should now be quite simple for the Minister, in a short space of time, to reach a decision rather than simply knock the issue into the long grass. That is why the frustration arises. I would not wish to disappoint the Minister by not addressing issues that he would like me to consider, but it behoves the Government to speed up the process. The purpose of new clause 16 is to help consumers to make better informed choices. They want to do more, but they often feel disempowered because they do not know enough and do not have enough information on which to base decisions. We have argued that they should have more information about how much of their energy bill goes on environmental taxes and charges, so that they know what proportion of their bill relates to renewables obligation certificates, the carbon emissions reduction target and the European emissions trading scheme. The Government blocked an amendment that would have allowed that, and we remain disappointed that they do not seem to want consumers to have more information. New clause 16 is on a separate issue: it would require energy companies to state on people's energy bills the volume of CO2 emitted in generating the energy for the consumer in the period in question. If the consumer bought green electricity only, the figure would be zero, but if the electricity was generated from coal-fired power stations or came from elsewhere, a much higher figure would be given. That would enable the consumer to say to their supplier, ““I want to switch to a company that will produce less CO2.”” The figure will, almost by definition, be a bit of an approximation, as we cannot expect the amount to be worked out to the hour for every consumer, but it would mean that suppliers consulted the people who generated the energy, and looked at the sources from which the power was generated over a period. They would then produce a total figure, which could be divided by the number of consumers. That would give the consumer information enabling them to make an informed choice. Of course, if the measure were taken forward, there are issues that would need to be addressed. For example, how would nuclear be assessed? Would the whole lifetime carbon costs of any construction be considered, or would we consider only the carbon produced in the course of generation? How would energy transported to this country through the French interconnector be assessed? However, those questions do not detract from the valuable contribution that the measure would make to enabling people to make informed choices. We want people to tackle waste and improve the energy efficiency of their homes. We should actively seek to make people do more in those respects, and to make them switch to less polluting electricity suppliers, but at the moment, unless they have a purely green supplier, they simply have no idea of how that is to be done. New clause 16 is a simple measure that would make such a switch possible. We should not say that the measure is too complicated, because Tesco announced yesterday that it would set out the carbon footprint for 30 of its products as a prelude to doing so much more widely. If that can be done for a packet of beans, a punnet of strawberries or whatever is on the Minister's shopping list for when he sits down to watch the football match tonight, it can be done for electricity bills, too. I hope that the Minister takes that point. On smart meters, I give him one and a half cheers for recognising that a provision addressing the issue should be included in the Bill, but there is still disappointment about the fact that he has not gone further.