Written questions by Collins.

What steps his Department is taking to support job creation in the renewable energy sector in (a) Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency and (b) Hertfordshire.

The Government’s initial assessment of the challenges of building the skilled workforce to deliver the Clean Energy Superpower Mission has been outlined in the Clean Power Action Plan. The Plan includes an Evidence Annex which provides a basis for Government to better understand the 2030 workforce requirements and support targeted skills planning. By 2030, the clean energy transition could create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, benefiting communities across the UK representing the economic opportunity of the century.

What steps his Department is taking to improve the energy efficiency of homes in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.

The Warm Homes Plan will help people find ways to save money on energy bills and transform our ageing building stock into comfortable, low-carbon homes that are fit for the future, including those in the Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency. We will upgrade up to 5 million homes across the country by accelerating the installation of efficient new technologies like heat pumps, solar, batteries and insulation. The Government has announced Wave 3 of the Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund in England, to support social housing providers and tenants, as well as the new Warm Homes: Local Grant to support low-income homeowners and private tenants. The Government has committed an initial £3.4 billion over the next 3 years towards heat decarbonisation and household energy efficiency. We will publish further details on the Warm Homes Plan in due course.

Whether there is a timeline for the delivery of Great British Energy’s first project to install rooftop solar panels in schools.

The match funding between GBE and DfE announced on 21 March 2025 will enable around 200 schools in England to install solar power and complementary decarbonisation technologies, helping to drive down their energy bills. It is estimated to provide up to £140 million of savings for schools bills over the 30-year lifetime of the panels. The Government will conduct feasibility studies for schools soon and anticipate installation work to start soon afterwards with the majority of installations happening over the 2025 School Summer holidays.

What steps his Department is taking to support nature-positive renewable energy.

The Government has been engaging with a range of stakeholders, providing an opportunity to share their ideas and views on how government can best encourage nature positive best practice into energy infrastructure planning and development. We are working to better understand how we can integrate nature restoration through Clean Power 2030.

What steps his Department is taking to support the development of green technologies.

The Government is committed to supporting the growth and scaling-up of green technologies, including through the creation of GB Energy, as part of its Clean Energy Superpower Mission. The Government will set out its full approach to seizing the growth opportunities from clean energy industries in the forthcoming Industrial Strategy.

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of listing air-to-air heat pumps as a cost-effective way to improve a property’s energy performance certificate rating.

Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are a critical tool in informing consumers about the running costs of their homes, helping them reduce both energy bills and carbon emissions. The EPC model already recognises the performance of air-to-air heat pumps...

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of recognising air-to-air heat pumps in energy performance certificates.

Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are a critical tool in informing consumers about the running costs of their homes, helping them reduce both energy bills and carbon emissions. The EPC model already recognises the performance of air-to-air heat pumps...