Written questions by Taylor.

Whether the Warm Homes Plan will include (a) independent inspections of retrofit work, (b) requirements for training for installers and (c) protections for residents.

The Government is reviewing the system of consumer protection and oversight for home retrofit installations. This work looks at the entire landscape: from how installers work in people’s homes to where homeowners turn for rapid action and enforcement if things go wrong. More information will be shared in the forthcoming Warm Homes Plan. The Government is planning to consult on proposals for retrofit system reform early next year.

What steps he is taking to ensure that (a) homes retrofitted under the Eco4 scheme are inspected and (b) any (i) substandard and (ii) unsafe work is fully remediated.

Government is offering free inspections of all properties where external wall insulation was fitted under ECO4. The focus is on this measure as audits highlighted particular issues with external wall insulation under the scheme. Ofgem will contact every household with external wall insulation that has not yet been audited. Remediation is already taking place to address substandard and unsafe work, and over half of the issues identified to date have been fixed. Trustmark, certification bodies and installation businesses are working hard to resolve these issues. They will be rectified at no cost to the consumer.

What steps he is taking to reduce the energy price cap.

The level of the price cap is calculated based on factors including the costs of buying gas, of transporting energy to homes and businesses across the country, and suppliers’ day-to-day costs. The single largest component is the wholesale cost of energy driven by the price of gas. The Government believes that our mission to deliver clean power by 2030 is the best way to break our dependence on global fossil fuel markets and protect billpayers permanently. We recognise that we need to support households struggling with bills whilst we transition to clean power by 2030. This is why we delivered the Warm Home Discount to around 3 million eligible low-income households last winter. On 19 June we announced that we are expanding the Warm Home Discount to around an additional 2.7 million households. This means that from this winter, around 6 million low-income households will receive the £150 support to help with their energy bills.

Whether he plans to bring the gas purchased for community heat networks under the energy price cap set by Ofgem.

Heat network operators typically buy their energy through commercial contracts. As the energy price cap has been designed for domestic electricity and gas customers, it could not be applied to the price of energy purchased on the wholesale market. DESNZ and Ofgem continue to monitor the heat network sector and to consider actions that could improve price deals available to heat network operators.

What steps his Department is taking to help small and medium high street businesses manage energy costs in Sutton and Cheam constituency.

Wholesale energy costs have decreased for non-domestic consumers since the global energy crisis, but we recognise that some businesses may be struggling to pay their bills. The Government believes that the only way to protect billpayers permanently, including small and medium sized enterprises, is to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels and towards homegrown clean energy. The creation of Great British Energy will help us to harness clean energy and have less reliance on volatile international energy markets and help in our commitment to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030. For non-domestic consumers who agreed to contracts at very expensive rates at the peak of price spikes, they can contact their supplier to enquire about ‘blend and extend’ contracts. These contracts blend the original, higher, unit rate with a new lower rate, spreading the cost over the course of an extended contract lifetime.

What funding is available to local councils to support the retrofitting of local authority homes in London to achieve an EPC grade C by 2030.

As the first step towards the Warm Homes Plan, the Government has committed an initial £3.4 billion over the next 3 years towards heat decarbonisation and household energy efficiency. The Government will partner with combined authorities and local councils to roll out this plan. Alongside current energy efficiency schemes, local councils will receive support through the recently announced Wave 3 of the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund (WH:SHF) in England, and Warm Homes: Local Grant (WH:LG), with delivery expected in 2025. The WH:LG will use an expression of interest model to allocate funding to local authorities. The application window will run from 16th October to 1st December 2024.