Written questions by Mohamed.

What steps he is taking in the Warm Homes Plan to support insulation upgrades for fuel-poor households in the private rented sector.

The Warm Homes Plan will cut bills, with an offer for every household, whether they own their home, rent privately, or live in social housing. We will reach up to five million homes by 2030, through direct support for those on low incomes and in fuel poverty, grants and innovative low-interest finance available to all. The Warm Homes: Local Grant is accessible to those living in privately rented accommodation, subject to eligibility. We are also standing up for renters through our new minimum energy efficiency standards in the private and social rented sectors, which will lift around 650,000 households out of fuel poverty.From 1 October 2030, private rented homes must meet the required standard, or have a valid exemption registered in order to be let.

What recent estimate he has made of the number of households in fuel poverty who live in properties that do not have loft insulation.

The latest annual fuel poverty statistics estimate that around 873,000 households in England were in fuel poverty in 2025 and lived in properties with under 125 mm of loft insulation, equivalent to a fuel poverty rate of 13.3% for this group. This compares with a rate of fuel poverty of around 7.8% (1.17 million households) among households with 125 mm or more of loft insulation, and 9% (316,000 households) among households where loft insulation is not applicable. These estimates are produced under the Low Income Low Energy Efficiency (LILEE) metric and are published in Table 17 of the Fuel poverty detailed tables 2026 (2025 data).

What steps he is taking to incentivise the installation of insulation to reduce private rented sector tenants’ energy bills.

The Warm Homes Plan will cut bills, with an offer for every household, whether they own their home, rent privately, or live in social housing. We will reach up to five million homes by 2030, through direct support for those on low incomes and in fuel poverty, grants and innovative low-interest finance available to all. The Warm Homes: Local Grant is accessible to those living in privately rented accommodation, subject to eligibility. We are also standing up for renters through our new minimum energy efficiency standards in the private and social rented sectors, which will lift around 650,000 households out of fuel poverty.From 1 October 2030, private rented homes must meet the required standard, or have a valid exemption registered in order to be let.

Whether his Department plans to make an assessment of the potential impact of enabling community energy schemes to sell energy to local households and businesses on the transition to Net Zero.

The Department is considering a range of reforms to unlock renewable investment and pass through the benefits of cheaper renewables to consumers. This includes potential changes to support local and community energy. All policies within my department and Government undergo appropriate analytical appraisals, which includes an assessment of the impacts on Net Zero. The Secretary of State previously commissioned Ofgem to explore policy and regulatory barriers to local supply, including route to market challenges. The Department continues to work with Ofgem and key stakeholders to enhance our community energy offer. We will set out further detail in due course.

What estimate his Department has made of the potential cost to the public purse of carbon capture technologies in each of the next three years.

The Autumn Budget settlement provides £3.9bn in 2025-26 for the first carbon capture and storage clusters in the UK. The breakdown of costs by financial year is commercially sensitive whilst negotiations progress. The cost of carbon capture after 2025-26 will be disclosed following the conclusion of the second phase of the Spending Review.

What assessment his Department has made of the viability of carbon capture technologies.

Carbon capture technology has been proven in many countries across the world, and the Climate Change Committee have described it as a “necessity not an option” for reaching Net Zero. As a part of the initial assessment for choosing the first CCUS clusters, projects were assessed against five criteria including deliverability, under which technical viability was considered.

What steps his Department is taking to build growth in community energy.

Community energy will play an essential role in meeting our mission for clean power by 2030, and Government recognises the important role community groups, including those in Sheffield play. Great British Energy will provide support to deliver the Local Power Plan, putting local authorities and communities at the heart of restructuring our energy economy. The Local Power Plan will help crowd‑in investment while ensuring benefits flow directly back into local communities.

What steps his Department is taking to build growth in community energy in Sheffield Central constituency.

Community energy will play an essential role in meeting our mission for clean power by 2030, and Government recognises the important role community groups, including those in Sheffield play. Great British Energy will provide support to deliver the Local Power Plan, putting local authorities and communities at the heart of restructuring our energy economy. The Local Power Plan will help crowd‑in investment while ensuring benefits flow directly back into local communities.

What steps his Department is taking to boost energy efficiency of homes in Sheffield Central constituency.

Support for boosting energy efficiency in homes is currently available through the Social Housing Decarbonisation Scheme, Home Upgrade Grant, Energy Company Obligation Scheme and the Great British Insulation scheme. These schemes are available across the country, including to those based in Sheffield. The Warm Homes Plan will offer grants and low interest loans to support investment in insulation, low carbon heating and other home improvements to cut bills. We will partner with combined authorities and local and devolved governments to roll out this plan.

What steps his Department has taken to develop a warm homes plan.

The Government’s Warm Homes Plan will transform homes across the country by making them cheaper and cleaner to run, rolling out upgrades from new insulation to solar and heat pumps. We have already announced the new Warm Homes: Local Grant to help low-income homeowners and private tenants with energy performance upgrades including insulation, as well as the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund, to support social housing providers and tenants. More detail will be provided next spring.