PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
MINIMUM ENERGY EFFICIENCY STANDARDS FOR PRIVATE RENTED HOMES (11 June 2014)

That this House notes that the private rented sector (PRS) is a rapidly growing part of the housing market, accounting for 17.5 per cent of English households; that the PRS has over five times more homes in EPC Bands F and G than the social housing sector and that nearly half the PRS households living in Band F and G properties are in fuel poverty, costing the NHS £145 million annually and that those households are home to 191,000 children, 62 per cent of whom are in fuel poverty; further notes that the Energy Act 2011 placed a duty on the Government to introduce a minimum energy efficiency standard for the PRS by April 2018, and that Ministers repeatedly indicated that they expected the standard to be EPC Band E; further notes that new research for WWF-UK and the UK Green Building Council shows that the average cost of bringing a property up to Band E is £1,421 and that 72 per cent of properties can reach this standard for less than £1,000; regrets that the regulations have been significantly delayed; therefore calls on the Government to consult on and lay the regulations without further delay, in order to give landlords adequate time to comply; and further calls on the Government to ensure that the regulations are made clear and enforceable by specifying Band E as the minimum standard in all cases, and by keeping exemptions to an absolute minimum.

Sponsored by:
Mr John Leech (Liberal Democrat)