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Energy: Generation Capacity
Lord Taylor of Holbeach asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Statement by Lord Jones of Birmingham on 10 January (Official Report, cols. 988—92) on energy policy, how they will ensure that power companies invest in a sufficient number of new power stations to replace one-third of the current generating capacity while using technologies that will meet their carbon emissions targets. [HL2648]
Lord Bach: The Government have put in place a regulatory framework within which energy companies have every commercial incentive to ensure that they have sufficient generating capacity to meet the electricity demand of their customers. In addition, the EU Emissions Trading Scheme provides a strong commercial incentive to minimise carbon emissions from power generation as well as from other industrial activities covered by the scheme.
Energy: Performance Certificates
Lord Taylor of Warwick asked Her Majesty's Government:
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): In England and Wales, energy performance certificates (EPCs) have been required for all dwellings put on the market since 14 December 2007. In accordance with the Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007 as amended, from 6 April 2008 EPCs will be required for newly built dwellings and on the rent, sale or construction of non-domestic buildings larger than 10,000 square metres. The requirement to have an EPC will be rolled out to other commercial buildings and rented dwellings during 2008. Details are set out in the table below. There are no plans to implement EPCs in September.
In Scotland, energy performance certificates were introduced for all new construction (dwellings and non-dwellings) for which a building warrant application was received by the local authority on or after 1 May 2007. EPCs for all other buildings will be introduced as follows:
| Description | Date of Introduction |
In Northern Ireland it is anticipated that EPCs will be required as follows:
| Description | Date of Introduction |
Energy: Wind Generation
Lord Dykes asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they intend to increase the number of offshore wind farms around the British Isles. [HL2784]
Lord Bach: On 10 December 2007 my right honourable friend the Secretary of State announced the launch of a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) on a draft plan for up to 25 gigawatts of new offshore wind development rights in UK waters. These proposals could lead to increasing our current plans of up to 8 gigawatts for offshore wind to up to 33 gigawatts.
We are undertaking a full assessment this year of our draft plan for offshore development. Following the results of the SEA, we expect to make a decision on whether to proceed with our draft plan in early 2009.
Eritrea
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the statement by the Government of Eritrea on 1 February regarding the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1798, particularly the assertion that the resolution disregards earlier resolutions of the Security Council, distorts the meaning of the Algiers Peace Agreement and represents a failure by the Security Council to ensure the withdrawal of the army and institutions of Ethiopia from the occupied territories. [HL2672]
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The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Malloch-Brown): The Government have not responded to the statement made by the Government of Eritrea on 1 February.
We fully support UN Security Council Resolution 1798. We believe it is entirely consistent with previous Security Council resolutions and the Algiers Peace Agreement. It states clearly what the council expects of both Eritrea and Ethiopia. We call on both parties to implement fully all its provisions, particularly that the parties:
hold the primary responsibility for resolving the dispute, in line with the Algiers agreements;should respect the integrity of the temporary security zone; andshould implement fully the delimitation decision of the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission.Eritrea's recent refusal to supply fuel to the UN Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) or to allow UNMEE to purchase its own fuel has meant that the mission has had to temporarily relocate out of Eritrea. We condemn Eritrea's unacceptable stance on fuel for UNMEE. It has also caused the Security Council to concentrate its attention on the safety and security of UNMEE personnel, thus distracting it from the core issue of the border dispute.
Flooding
Lord Ryder of Wensum asked Her Majesty's Government:
What mechanisms are in place to (a) review and (b) overturn planning decisions made by local authorities to build new dwellings in areas of high flood risk. [HL2606]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): Section 100 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 provides a mechanism for the Secretary of State to initiate proceedings for the revocation or modification of planning permission. Revocation or modification can only be made before a planning permission is implemented and the Secretary of State can use these powers as she thinks fit, after consultation with the local planning authority.
Section 104 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 enables the Secretary of State to make an order requiring that any use of land shall be discontinued or continued subject to conditions, or that any buildings or works shall be altered or removed, if it appears expedient for her to do so.
Such intervention by the Secretary of State can only be justified in exceptional circumstances. The Secretary of State will generally use these powers only if the original decision is judged to be grossly wrong, so that damage is likely to be done to the wider public interest. Each case is considered on its merits.
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Lord Ryder of Wensum asked Her Majesty's Government:
What (a) number and (b) percentage of new dwellings were built in areas of high flood risk in each year since 1997 in (1) England and (2) each government region; and what projections they have made of the number of new dwellings that will be built in areas of high flood risk in each year to 2020. [HL2607]
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Baroness Andrews: Between 1997 and 2005, the most recent year for which data are available currently, an estimated 120,860 dwellings were built in England in areas of high flood risk. This is 9 per cent of all dwellings built in this time. The tables below detail the (a) number and (b) percentage of dwellings built in England and each government region in each year.
The Government have not made projections of how many houses will be built in flood-risk areas in future years.
| a) The number of dwellings built in Flood Risk Areas 1997-2005 | ||||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 1997-2005 | |
| b) The percentage of dwellings built in Flood Risk Areas 1997-2005 | ||||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 1997-2005 | |
1. There is an inevitable time-lag between land use change occurring and it being recorded; therefore data are constantly being updated.
2. The data in the table above are based on records received from Ordnance Survey up to September 2007, consistent with the January 2008 update of LUCS.
4. The definition of high flood-risk areas used by Communities and Local Government is the high-risk zone mapped by the Environment Agency as being at a probability of flooding, excluding the presence of flood defences, of at least one in 100 each year for river flooding and at least one in 200 for coastal flooding. High flood-risk areas account for about 10 per cent of land in England, including parts of major cities such as London.
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